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LET THE LlT-TLE ONES COME UN- TO ME, 



The Wonderful Story of Jesus 

TOLD IN SIMPLE LANGUAGE 

IN WORDS OK EASY READING FOR THE YOUNG. 

THE SWEET STORY 

OF THE 

Prince of Peace 

FROM THE MANGER TO THE CROSS 

Made Clear to the Mind and Heart of the Little Ones 



-WITH THE AID OF MORE THAN- 



TWO HUNDRKD PICTURES 

copies of world-famous works of art 

Showing Forth In-Door and Out-Door Scenes in the Holy Land 
While our Lord Jesus Christ was on Earth. 

BY 

Josephine Pollard, 

h 

Author of "History of the Old Testament,'''' "-History of the New Testament" "Young Folks' 1 Bible,''' 1 "The 

Bible and its Story,''' 1 etc., etc., etc. 



New York and St. Louis: 

1ST. D. THOMPSON PUBLISHING CO 

1890. 







2>- 



COPYRIGHTED 1890 BY N. D. THOMPSON PUBLISHING CO. 



A WORD TO THE READER 



A piece of cloth was once brought to a man, who was 
told to take out of it all the threads of gold that shone 
there-in, and weave them in-to a web of their own. This 
seemed at first not a hard task, for the bright threads shone 
out so that the eye could not fail to see them. But it was 
found that each gold thread was so much a part of the 
warp and the woof that he must take great care who 
would weave them a-new, lest the web should be spun 
wrong, and the bright gold marred. 

With some such thought as this in my mind I sat down 
to write The Life of Christ. The New Tes-ta-ment is 
full of Him. He is the Good News. But how can it be 
made clear to the mind of the young child who has just 
learned to read, and must take short steps? 

Well do I call to mind the snarl it seemed to me when 
I was young, and how hard I tried to get things straight 
and smooth. We were blind then and groped in the dark. 
We had not such help as young folks have now-a-days. 

Mat-thew, Mark, Luke and John were with Je-sus 
when He was on earth, and each one told in his own way 
the things that he had seen and heard. If we read them 
with-out the light thrown on the page, we are lost in a 
maze of doubt and can-not tell when the things took 
place, or if Je-sus spoke the same words twice or not, 



It has been the au-thor's aim to take the bright threads 
that these four men wove in-to their web, and so weave 
them that they shall shine out for young eyes, and for old eyes 
too, and be to them like a great piece of Cloth of Gold. 

The light of the great star shines out on the night. 
Come, let us go with the wise men of the East who set out 
to find Je-sus. We will see him as a young child and as 
a boy in his home on the hill-side, and read of all the great 
works he did in his short life-time. Here is a dark page 
where Je-sus was put to death by his foes, but on it shines 
the Cross with a great blaze of light. He must have a 
heart of stone who can read of these things and not feel 
drawn to Je-sus, who came in-to the world to save us and 
who laid down His life for us. 

That those who read this book may learn to love Him 
more and more, and grow to be more Christ-like each day 
of their lives, more brave and true — glad to bear the Cross, 
and to do good in His name — with-out fear of loss or hope 
of gain, is the fond wish of their friend, 

The Author. 



CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER I. 

PAGE. 

The Birth of Je-sus, ......... 2>Z 

CHAPTER II. 
The Home at Naz-a-reth, ..... 52 

CHAPTER III. 
Je-sus and John Preach and Teach, . . . . „ . 79 

CHAPTER IV. 
Je-sus at the Well, ......... 95 

CHAPTER V. 
The Ser-mon on the Mount, . . . . . . . 115 

CHAPTER VI. 
Je-sus at Nain, .......... 134 

CHAPTER VII. 
Je-sus by the Sea-Side, ........ 142 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Je-sus at Ca-per-na-um, . . . . . . . . 156 

CHAPTER IX. 

The Pool of Be-thes-da. — Je-sus in Je-ru-sa-lem. — Death of John 

the Bap-tist, . . . . . . . . . . 173 



Contents. 
CHAPTER X. 



PAGE. 



Five Thous-and Fed. — Je-sus Walks on the Sea. — He Warns 

Ju-das, ........... 1 86 

CHAPTER XI. 

The Lord's Prayer. — The Law-yer. — The Rich Fool. — Je-sus Talks 

to the Crowd, and Bids Them Watch, . . . . 206 

CHAPTER XII. 

Je-sus Goes to Tyre and Si-don. — Heals the Child of the Greek 

Wom-an. — Gives the Blind Man Sight. — His Charge to Pe-ter, 217 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Je-sus is Trans-fig-ured. — The Lit-tle Child in Their Midst. — 

How to For-give Debts, 228 

CHAPTER XIV. 
The Tem-ple Tax. — The Great Feast of the Jews. — Je-sus goes 

NOT UP WITH HIS KlNS-FOLK. u lAM THE LlGHT OF THE WORLD." 

The Man Born Blind, . . . . . . . . 241 

CHAPTER XV. 

Je-sus Leaves Gal-i-lee. — Sends out the Sev-en-ty.— Heals Ten 
Lep-ers. — The Wom-an Bowed Down. — Par-a-ble of the King's 
Wed-ding Feast, . . . . . . . . . 264 

CHAPTER XVI. 

The Un-just Stew-ard.— The Rich Man and Laz-a-rus. — The Good 
Sa-mar-i-tan. — The Prod-i-gal Son. — The Lost Sheep. — The 
Lost Piece of Sil-ver, ........ 282 

CHAPTER XVII. 

Mary's Choice. — They Bring Young Chil-dren to Je-sus. — The 
Young Rul-er. — The Work-men in the Vine-yard. — The High 
Priest Tells that Je-sus Must Die, .... 298 



Contents. 
CHAPTER XVIII. 

PAGE. 

The Pass-o-ver Feast. — Blind Bar-ti-me-us. — Zac-che-us Climbs a 
Tree. — Je-sus on the Way to Je-ru-sa-lem.— The Feast at 
Beth-a-ny, . . . . . . . . . .314 

CHAPTER XIX. 

Je-sus Leaves Beth-a-ny. — Songs of Praise, and Palms of Joy. — 
He Speaks in the Tem-ple. — A Voice From on High. — The 
Fig Tree that Bore no Fruit, . . . . . .326 

CHAPTER XX. 

Last Days. — What the Signs Shall Be. — The Ten Vir-gins. — The 

Ten Tal-ents, . . . . . . . . . 344 

CHAPTER XXI. 

Ju-das Plots to Sell His Lord. — The Last Sup-per. — Je-sus Washes 

the Dis-ci-ples Feet. — Lord is it I? . . . . 359 

CHAPTER XXII. 
With Je-sus in The Up-per Room, . . . . . .371 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Je-sus in the Gar-den of Geth-sem-a-ne. — The Ju-das Kiss. — In the 
Hands of His Foes. — He is Brought Be-fore the High Priest, 

AND THEN SENT TO Pl-LATE. Pe-TER De-NIES HlS LORD, . 387 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

Je-sus on the Cross, and in the Grave. — An An-gel Rolls the 

Stone A-way. — "He is Not Here, He has Ris-en," . . 415 

CHAPTER XXV. 

The Walk to Em-a-us. — Je-sus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. — 

The Last Fare-well. — A Cloud Hides Him From Sight, . 436 




@/cr 



-snS) 



Let the lit-tle ones come un-to me, 

Beth-le-hem and the tombs of the monks, 

Con-vent that marks the birth-place of Je-sus, 

I bring you good news, 

The first Christ-mas, 

The Christ-child, 

The wise men and the star, 

Rich gifts they brought, 

Sim-e-on gives thanks to God, 

The flight in-to E-g)7pt, 

Hous-es in Naz-a-reth, 

Naz-a-reth, 

Car-pen-ter's shop, 

His hum-ble trade, 

Christ brought by his par-ents, 

Booths or tents used in the East, 

Taught from the Word of God, 

Je-sus in the tem-ple, 

Palms and fruits of Pal-es-tine, 

Figs and date palms, 

The rol-ler bird, 

John the Bap-tist, 

Fords of the Jor-dan, 

Wild-er-ness of Ju-de-a, 

Banks of the Jor-dan, 



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Illustrations, 



One of the fords of the Jor-dan, 

The riv-er Jab-bok, 

On the Dead Sea, 

Dead Sea, 

Dead Sea by moon-light, 

Temp-ta-tion in the des-ert, 

Temp-ta-tion on the moun-tain, 

The Jor-dan val-ley, . 

Come with me, 

Boat in Sea of Gal-i-lee, 

Ca-na in Gal-i-lee, 

Fill the wa-ter pots, . 

Je-sus turns wa-ter in-to wine, 

Ruins of Ca-na of Gal-i-lee, 

Take these things from God's house, 

Je-sus and Nic-o-de-mus, 

Sy-char, 

An old well, 

Ruins of tem-ple of Man-as^ 

Mount Ger-i-zim, 

Foot of Mount Ger-i-zim, 

Top of Mount Ger-i-zim, 

Gal-i-lee, . 

Gal-i-lee, . . , 

Street in Naz-a-reth, 

A Jew-ish syn-a-gogue, 

Hills a-round Naz-a-reth, 

Christ heal-ing the sick, 

Fish from the Sea of Gal-i 

The draught of fish-es, 

A man named Mat-thew, 

Ti-be-ri-as, 

The Ser-mon on the mount, 

Gol-den can-die stick, 

The part-ridge that feeds on poor soil, 

The part-ridge that feeds on rich soil, 



seh, 



ee. 



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in 

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114 

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Illustrations, 



Storks — Quail, . 

The Gal-li-nule, 

Flow-ers of the field, 

Wall of Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Da-mas-cus gate, Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Ro-man Cen-tu-ri-on, 

Speak but the word, 

Nain, .... 

The wid-ow's son, 

Plains of Gal-i-lee, 

House of a rich man, 

East-ern san-dals, 

Couch used at meals, 

She bowed her head with shame. 

Spike-nard, 

Je-sus teach-ing by the sea-side, 

An east-ern sow-er, 

The wheat and the tares, 

Great spot-ted cuck-oo, 

Lord, save us ! . 

Tombs, .... 

Be-hold, I stand at the door, 

Where the Jews went to weep a 

The daugh-ter of Ja-i-rus, 

Rise, my child ! 

Brought him the dumb, 

View in Da-mas-cus, . 

Pool of Be-thes-da, 

An an-gel stirred the pool, 

Pool of Sol-o-mon, 

Pool of Hez-e-ki-ah, . 

East-ern flute play-er, 

Map of the Sea of Gal-i-lee, 

Christ feed-ing the mul-ti-tude, 

Je-sus walks on the sea, 



d wai 



Illustrations, 



Ru-ins of a syn-a-gogue, 

In the corn-field, 

Wom-en grind-ing corn, 

Ta-ble of shew-bread, 

Wild with rage, 

Wash-ing hands, 

Fish-hawk, 

Young ra-vens, 

Cor-mo-rant, 

Ra-ven, 

Ru-ins of Tyre, 

Si-don, 

Send her a-way, 

He sat down to rest and pray, 

Mag-da-la, 

Lake, or Sea of Gal-i-lee, 

Ru-ins at Cses-a-re-a, Phil-ip-pi, 

Mount Her-mon, 

The trans-fig-ur-a-tion 

Rest and shade, 

Mount Tabor, . 

Sor-row for sin, 

The sheep that was lost, 

Shouldst thou not for-give, 

Mount of Ol-ives, 

Vil-lage of Si-lo-am, 

Pool of Si-lo-am, 

The man born blind, 

The good shep-herd, 

A bird of prey, 

Ru-ins on site of Cho-ra-zin, 

Ru-ins at Cho-ra-zin, 

Ru-ins of temple at Ger-a-sa 

Ru-ins of Ger-a-sa, . 

Tow-er of An-to-ni-a, 

Ro-man sol-diers. 



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Illustrations. 



Ro-man arms, .... 

Group of Sa-mar-i-tans, 

Lep-ers out-side the gate, 

Je-sus preach-ing in syn-a-gogue, 

Ru-ins of syn-a-gogue, 

The wed-ding feast, 

The beg-gar at the rich man's gate, 

Jew-ish priest, 

A Le-vite, .... 

Rob-bers on the road to Jer-i-cho, 

Half dead by the road-side, 

Palms and plains of Jer-i-cho, 

Wom-an of Naz-a-reth, 

Beth-a-ny, .... 

Ma-ry hath cho-sen the good part, 

Then the Jews took up stones, 

Ma-ry bathes the feet of Christ, 

Laz-a-rus raised from the dead, 

Jew-ish high priest, 

Je-sus on the way to Je-ru-sa-lem, 

On the way to Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Je-ru-sa-lem from the south, 

Sup-posed site of Jer-i-cho, 

Mount at Jer-i-cho, 

Zac-che-us called by Christ, 

Square ru-in at Jer-i-cho, 

On the road to Beth-a-ny, 

View in Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Beth-page, 

Where Beth-page once stood, 

East-ern ass-es, • 

En-try in-to Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Je-ru-sa-lem from Mount of Ol-ives, 

Christ weep-ing o-ver Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Sir, we would see Je-sus, 

Fig tree, ..... 



Illustrations 



is 



Look-ing down on Beth-a-ny, 

Street in Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Friend, how didst thou come in? 

Day-break at Je-ru-sa-lem, 

Gold-en gate, .... 

Whose face is on the coin? 

The wid-ow's mite, 

Ru-ins of an arch, 

Lord, let us in, 

Ju-das plots with the foes of Je-sus, 

Brook Ked-ron, 

The last sup-per, 

Je-sus wash-es the dis-ci-ples' feet, 

Is it I? . 

Tomb of Da-vid, 

Church of the Ho-ly Sep-ul-chre, 

The way of grief, 

The place where Pi-late said, This 

Carved tomb, . 

Slopes a-bove the Ked-ron, 

Moon-light on Mount of Ol-ives, 

Vale of the Ked-ron, 

Ol-ive grove, .... 

Ol-ive press, .... 

Christ on the Mount of Olives, 

Geth-sem-a-ne, 

Scene at Geth-sem-a-ne, 

Gar-den at Geth-sem-a-ne, 

The Ju-das kiss, 

Je-sus be-fore the high priest, . 

The chief priests tell what Je-sus has 

Pe-ter de-nies his Lord, 

The price of blood, 

The field of blood, . 

What shall I do with Je-sus? 

Scourg-ing Christ, 



the 



done, 



man 



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Illustrations. 



Crown of thorns, 

Then Je-sus came forth, . 

Not this man, 

Je-sus falls be-neath the cross, 

On the cross, 

The Marys at the cross, 

Veil of temple rent in twain, 

They took Je-sus down, . 

He was borne to the tomb, 

Sep-ul-chre, or tomb, 

Friends of Je-sus, 

The guards at the tomb, 

Je-sus shows him-self to Mary, 

He is not here, 

Em-a-us, . . 

Je-sus shows him-self to his dis-ci-ples, 

He shows them his hands, 

Sea of Gal-i-lee, 

Cast-ing the net, 

The net did not break, 

Je-sus takes bread and gives to them 

Brow of the Mount of Ol-ives, 

The as-cen-sion, 

He has balm for all our wounds 

The mosque of O-mar, 

Je-sus my king, 



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THE SHEF-HERDS COME TO SEE JE-SUS. 



The Story of Jesus. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE BIRTH OF JE-SUS. 

In those dim old days, far back in the past, men did 
not live as they do now. They formed them-selves in-to 
tribes, and each tribe dwelt by it-self in tents made of the 
skins of beasts. They kept the old laws that Mo-ses gave 
them when he led the twelve tribes out of the land of E-gypt, 
and through the Red Sea, and by the food they ate, the 
way they lived, and the forms they made use of, showed 
that they were of the race of Jews, whom God had set a-part 
to do His will. 

In time they learned how to build homes for them-selves 
out of wood and stone, and some of the Jews grew rich, and 
lived in fine style. But a large part of them were poor, and 
all had to pay a large tax to this King or that King, who 
looked up-on them as his slaves. 

It was hard for the Jews to bear this yoke, and as far 
back as the days of Mo-ses they longed to be free; and hopes 
were held out to them that they should have a King of their 
own. They did not think that their chief yoke was their 
sins; and when A-bra-ham, Jo-seph, Josh-u-a and Da-vid 

33 



34 The Birth of ye^sus. 

spoke of One who was to save them, they looked for a great 
King, rich, strong and brave, who would lead them to war 
and put all their foes to flight. 

For a long time the wise men of the Jews had thought 
it would be well to have one great church or tem-ple, where 
all could meet on feast days and fast days, and where the 
ark of God could be kept. This was the chief wish of 
King Da-vid's heart, but though he lived to build the great 
town of Je-ru-sa-lem, he died ere the Tem-ple could be 
built. This work was done by his son, Sol-o-mon, who 
was so rich and so wise that his fame spread far and wide, 
and men from all parts of the then known world came to 
see him, and to bring him rich gifts. 

Proud were the Jews who could boast that they were 
of the tribe of Ju-dah, and in King Da-vid's line, for this 
gave them high rank though they might not have much 
of this world's goods. And it is a cause for pride to be 
well-born; not the wrong kind of pride that puts on airs and 
turns up its nose, but the right kind of pride that keeps one 
clean and true, and makes him loath to do aught that will 
soil the name he bears. 

Now in the days when Her-od was King of Ju-de-a, 
and in the pay of the King of Rome, there lived a priest 
named Zach-a-ri-as and his wife E-liz-a-beth, and it was a 
great grief to them that they had no child. Each priest 
had his own work to do in the church of God, and Zach-a- 
ri-as had charge of the al-tar of in-cense where woods and 
gums were burned that filled the whole place with a sweet 
smell, and the smoke of which rose to God like prayers 
from the hearts of men. 



The Birth of ye-sus. 35 

One day, when this priest stood by the al-tar, an an-gel 
came to him, and said, Fear not, Zach-a-ri-as, for thy 
prayer is heard. God will give to thee a son, and thou 
shalt call his name John. And he shall be great in the 
sight of the Lord, and shall drink no wine nor strong drink. 
He shall turn the hearts of the Jews to the Lord their God, 
and fit them for their Lord and King who is to come. 

The priest said to the an-gel, By what sign shall I know 
this? for I am an old man, and my wife is well on in years. 
The an-gel said to him, I am sent to speak to thee, and to 
bring thee these good news. And thou shalt be dumb 
till the day that these things come to pass, be-cause thou didst 
not have faith in me, and be-lieve that my words were true. 

When the priest came out of the sa-cred place, it was 
seen by those who were in wait for him that he was both 
deaf and dumb. He could not speak or hear, but tried to 
tell them by signs what he had seen, and still kept at his 
tasks. 

In due time God gave to E-liz-a-beth a son, and there 
was great joy at his birth, and the friends came to show 
how glad they were. They called the babe Zach-a-ri-as, 
for they said it was but right that he should have the same 
name as his fa-ther. But his mo-ther said, Not so; but 
he shall be called John. They said to her, There is none 
of thy folks called by this name. And they asked the fa- 
ther by signs how he would have him called. 

The priest took up a tab-let smeared with wax, which 
was the kind of slate used in those days, and wrote on it, 
His name is John. And the friends thought it strange, for 
as he was deaf he could not have heard what his wife had 



36 The Birth of ye-siis. 

said. And at once his tongue was loosed, and he spake, 
and gave praise to God. 

And great fear came on all those who dwelt near them, 
and these things were much talked of in all that part of Ju- 
de-a. And all they that heard them laid the words up in 
their hearts, and said from time to time, What then shall 
this child be? For the hand of the Lord w 7 as with him. 
And the child grew in size and strength, and through all the 
days of his youth led a calm life, far from the haunts of men, 
that he might have time to think and to fit him-self for the 
life he was to lead when a full grown man. 

Those who are to do a great work need time to think 
and pray. God sets them off from the world for a while, 
so that the things of the world shall not clog their mind. 
If John had staid a-mong men, his words would not have 
had so much weight with them, for they would have said to 
them-selves, We know this man — we went to school with 
him, and played with him when he was a boy, and it can- 
not be that he knows more than the rest of us. And they 
would not have cared so much to hear him preach. 

God fits men for their work, and if they pay heed to 
Him, and o-bey His will they are sure to come out all 
right. The food John ate was to keep him in health. He 
did no hard work, and so did not need strong meat, and he 
drank from the clear streams that gushed forth from the 
rocks. He was taught of God in ways that we know not 
of; for we are not told of his boy-hood or man-hood, from 
his birth up to the time that he be-gan to preach. All that 
we know is that he led an out-of-door life. And men went 
to him to hear what he had to say. 



The Birth of Jesus. 37 

Now ere the year was out the same an-gel that came to 
the priest, was sent from God to a town in Gal-i-lee, named 
Naz-a-reth, where lived a man named Joseph and Ma-ry 
his wife. And he came where Mary was, and said to her, 
Hail, thou that art loved with a great love! The Lord is 
with thee ! And when she heard these words she knew not 
what to say or do. 

And the an-gel said to her, Fear not, Ma-ry; for thou 
hast found favor with God, and he will give thee a son, 
and thou shalt call his name Je-sus. He shall be great, 
and shall be called the Son of the Most High, and God 
will set him on Da-vid's throne, and he shall be King of the 
Jews, and there shall be no end to his reign. 

Ma-ry said, how can this be? The an-gel said, God 
can do all things. Then said Ma-ry, Let His will be done 
in me; and the an-gel left her. 

Now in these days word was sent out from Rome that 
all the world should be taxed. Ro-mans and Jews were to 
go to the town from whence their tribe first came, and give 
in their names that they might be put on the tax-lists. 
And Jo-seph and Ma-ry went to Beth-le-hem, for both 
were of the house of Da-vid, who was born there. 

Their way led up a hill, on top of which the town of 
Beth-le-hem was built, and as they were forced to walk 
slow, it was late when they reached there, and there was no 
room for them in the inn. The night was cold, and they were 
in need of rest, but the town was full, and the inn was full 
and they sought in vain for a place to lay their heads. Some of 
the large inns had court-yards, and a host who took care of his 
guests; but this way-side inn was just a place where rooms 



The Birth of Jesus. 



39 



were let, and those who stopped there brought their own 
food, and took care of such cat-tie as they might have with 

them. 

As the town of Beth-le-hem was on a hill, the cat-tie 
sheds were cut out of the lime-stone rock, and in one of 
these, in the midst of the hay and straw spread out there, 
Christ was born. 




THE I- ON-VENT THAT MARKS THE BIKTH-PI.ACE OF JE-SUS. 

The word Beth-le-hem meant The House of Bread, 
but those who gave that name to the small town, five miles 
south of Je-ru-sa-lem, did not know that thetime would come 
when it would be more thought of than Je-ru-sa-lem it-self. 
It was part of God's plan that He who brought the bread 
of life to feed the soul of man, should be born in Beth-le- 
hem, The House of Bread. 

The Church of Rome has built a con-vent, that is, a 
home for monks, or nuns — to mark the spot where Je-sus 
was born, and to keep it safe from harm. 



4° 



The Birth of Jesus. 



Ma-ry had no one to help her, and with her own hands 
she wrapped the babe in the swad-dling clothes, or bands, 




I BRING YOU GOOD NEWS. 



which are put on a child at its birth, and laid him in the 
trough, or box, from whence the cat-tie took their food. 



The Birth of Jesus. 



41 



It was .a Tough place. It may have been a cave, or a 
shed. That we do not know, for it was not thought worth 
while to tell just how it was built. But when Christ 
was born in it, there was no place in all the world so full of 
light and joy. 




THE FIRST CHRIST-MAS. 



The soul of man is like an inn. All sorts of folks stop 
there. Those that have wealth get the best rooms, and 
keep them-selves well in the fore-ground. The love of 
gold, love of dress, and show, pride, and love of self, fill 
the whole space. Their thoughts are all on what they 
shall eat, what they shall drink, and what they shall wear. 
The crowd is great. In vain does Christ stand out-side 



42 The Birth of yes us. 

the door, and knock. There is no room for Him in the 
inn. 

But there is a poor soul near whose lot is a low one. 
The rich turn from her as if she was no more to them 
than the beast of the field. Her heart is like a shed, in-to 
which the winds and rains pour, and storms beat on the 
roof from day to day. Hay and straw are all a-round her. 
But in the midst of it all she keeps a clean swept place. 
And one night, when her heart was full of gloom, the 
noise of those at the inn made her feel as if she was shut 
out from all the good things of life. 

One night as she lay in her shed she clasped her hands, 
and raised her eyes, and there — there — through a chink in 
the roof, she caught sight of a star! What did it mean? 
Some good was on its way to her; she knew it by the 
strange thrill in her heart, the fresh hope and strength, the 
calm trust in God's will. Her sins had kept her where 
she was. Her heart was full of chaff, a place where beasts 
of the field were fed. It should be so no more. And 
then Je-sus was born! There was not room for Him in the 
inn, but there was room for Him in her heart, and the light 
that shone from His face, made all the place seem as if lit 
by the sun. 

None are so poor that they can-not make room for Je- 
sus—if they will. If your heart is like an inn, where all 
sorts of things crowd in, and crowd Him out, you will miss 
the joy of life, and shut out that which is more to you than 
sun-light. Make room for Je-sus. Let Him be your guest. 

Now there were in Ju-de-a some shep-herds who 
watched their flocks by night lest the wild beasts should 
come and slay them. And while they kept watch through 



The Birth of ye-sus. 



43 



the dark hours, an an-gel came and stood by them, a 
bright light shone round them, and they were in great 
fear. The an-gel said to them, Fear not, for to you and to 
all I bring glad news. For Christ the Lord, who is to 

save you from 
your sins, is born 
this day in the 
town of Beth-le- 
hem. And this 
shall be the sign 
to you: Ye shall 
find a babe wrap- 
ped in swad-dling 
clothes and ly-ing 
in a man-ger. 
And as he ceased 
to speak a host of 
white-robed an- 
gels stood round 
him, and all sang 
a hymn of praise 
to God, and said, 
Praise be to God 
most high, and on 
earth peace and 
good will to men. 
When the an-gels had left them, the shep-herds said 
to each oth-er, Let us go to Beth-le-hem and see this thing 
which has come to pass and which the Lord hath made 




THE CHRIST-CHILD. 



44 The Birth of ye-sus. 

known to us. And they came with haste, and found Ma-ry 
and Jo-seph, and the babe lying in a man-ger, just as the 
an-gel had said. And when they had seen it, they spread 
the glad news, and all they that heard were awe-struck at 
the things that were told them by the shep-herds. Ma-ry 
spoke not a word, but kept all these things in her heart; 
and the shep-herds went back to their homes, and gave 
thanks to God for all that they had seen and heard. 

Now there were in the East at the time of King Her- 
od's reign, some priests who gave much time and thought 
to the stars. The sky was like a book to them, and each 
night they would gaze, and gaze, and read the signs on 
the broad page spread out be-fore their eyes. These men 
were so wise, and were so much thought of, that they were 
called Kings; and three of them had seen the strange star 
that shone on the shep-herds who watched their flocks by 
night. 

These three Kings set out from their homes and came 
to Je-ru-sa-lem, and asked of all whom they met, Where is 
he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his 
star in the east and have come to worship him. When 
Her-od, the King, heard it, he was in great fear lest 
he should lose his throne; and all Je-ru-sa-lem was in 
a state of dread, for they knew not what Her-od might do. 
When he had brought all the chief priests to one place, he 
asked them where the Christ should be born. And they 
said, In Beth-le-hem of J u-de-a, for so had it been fore-told. 
Then Her-od had a talk with the wise men, and found 
out what time they first saw the star. And he sent them 
to Beth-le-hem and said, Go and search well for the young 




THE WISE MEN AND THE STAR. 



46 The Birth of Jesus. 

child, and when ye have found him bring me back word 
that I may come and bow down at his feet. 

Then they went on their way, and lo, the star which 
they saw in the east went on with them till it came to the 
house where Je-sus was, and there it stood still. The 
sight of the star gave them great joy, and when they 
came in-to the house they saw the young child, with Ma- 
ry his mo-ther, and they bowed down be-fore him who was 
the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Then they gave 
to him the rich gifts they had brought, of gold, and rare 
gums such as they were wont to give to kings, and gods. 

God warned the wise men in a dream not to go back 
to king Her-od, so they went to their own land by a way 
that led not near Je-ru-sa-lem. 

On the eighth day the child was named, and he was 
called Je-sus; and when he was for-ty days old Ma-ry and 
Jo-seph took thei'r first born son and went up to the Tem- 
ple at Je-ru-sa-lem. It was a law of the Jews that each first 
born male — both of man and of beast — was to be brought 
to God. A vow was made that the child would be 
brought up to do God's will, and be taught all God's laws 
as they had been made known to men. Those who were 
rich were to bring a lamb, which was slain on the al-tar 
and burned there, and the lamb thus slain was a sign that 
One was to come, and by His death take all the sins of the 
world a-way. 

Those who were poor brought a pair of young doves, 
and with these and the young babe — who was him-self the 
Lamb of God — Jo-seph and Ma-ry went up to the priest 
in the Tem-ple. 



48 



The Birth of fesus. 



Now there was in Je-ru-sa-lem a good old man named 
Sim-e-on, who was well read in the law, and had long 
looked for One who was to come and save the Jews, as 
the wise men had fore-told. And it was shown to him in a 
dream that he should not die till he had seen the Lord's 
Christ — And he came to the Tem-ple at the same time 
that the par-ents brought in the child Je-sus, that they 
might do for him as they were taught in the Law. 




SIM-E-ON GIVES THANKS TO GOD. 



As soon as Sim-e-on saw the child, he took it in his 
arms, and burst forth in a grand song of praise to God, and 
said, Now let Thou Thy ser-vant go, O Lord, in peace as 
Thou hast said; for mine eyes have seen Him whom Thou 
hast sent to save men from their sins, and to be a light to 






The Bii'th of yes us, 49 

all the world. Joseph and Ma-ry did not know what was 
meant by the strange words he spoke. And Sim-e-on 
blest them, and said to Ma-ry, This child is set for the fall 
and rise of men — -and for a sign that shall be looked on as 
a mark of shame. Yes, a sword shall pierce through thy 
own soul, and His grief shall be thine. In these words he 
showed forth the life and death of Je-sus. Men were to be 
brought down by a sense of sin, and were to be raised up 
through faith and a good life. His life on earth was to 
end on the cross — on which none but the worst of men 
were put to death — and the sword would pierce her heart 
then and there, and test the faith oi all the world. 

And there was one An-na, a wise wom-an who fore- 
told strange things that were to take place. Her hus-band 
was dead, and she was now four-score and lour years old, 
and she lived in the Tem-ple and took part in all the 
feasts and fasts that were held there, night and day. 
And at the same hour that Sim-e-on took the child in his 
arms, An-na gave thanks to God that He had come who 
was to save the world from its sins and to be the King of 
the Jews. And she spoke of Him to all those who stood 
near her. 

When they had done all that they came to do, Jo-seph 
and Ma-ry went back to the house in which they now 
lived at Beth-le-hem. And it was not long ere an an-gel 
came to Jo-seph in a dream, and said to him, Rise, and 
take the young child and his moth-er, and flee to E-gypt, 
and stay thou there till I tell thee to leave. For Her-od 
will seek the young child to kill him. Jo-seph rose at 
once, and took the young child and his moth-er, and set 



5° 



The Birth of "Jesus . 



out the same night for the land of E-gypt, and was there 
till the death of Her-od, that the words which a wise man 




THE FLTGHT IN-TO K-GYPT. 



of old had said might come true. And these words were, 
Out of E-gypt I have called my son. 

It is worth while to pause here, and let our thoughts 
rest a-while on the great faith shown by Jo-seph and Ma- 



The Birth of ye-sus. 51 

ry. What God told them to do they did at once. They 
did not wait, or stop to find fault with the task, or to speak 
of the hard-ships of their lot; but left all, and set forth with 
speed. God had bid them go, and they could not stay. 
He would take care of them, and keep them from all harm; 
for there is no place in the world where He is not. 

Her-od was wroth when he found out how he had been 
mocked by the three wise men from the east. He was full 
of craft him-self, but he did not wish men do to him as he 
did to them. So he sent out to Beth-le-hem and the 
coasts a-round, and had all the boys put to death that were 
two years old or less. And there was great grief in the 
land. 

But Her-od was struck down in the midst of his crimes; 
and one night an an-gel came to Jo-seph, and said, Rise, 
and take the young child and his moth-er and go to their own 
land, for they are dead who sought the young child's life. 
And he rose, and took the young child and his moth-er, and 
set out for Beth-le-hem. On the way he was met with 
the news that the worst of Her-od's four sons was on the 
throne, and he feared for his child's life, and went to 
Gal-i-lee and to a place called Naz-a-reth, for God so 
willed it. 



CHAPTER II 



THE HOME AT NAZ-A-RETH. 



There is not one of us but would like to know how Je- 
sus looked when a child. His home was in Gal-i-lee in 
the midst of a poor class of Jews, and of Greeks and A- 
rabs that were not thought much of by the rest of the 
world. Here he lived, and we are left to think that he 




HOUS-ES IN NAZ-A-RETH. 



played like the rest of boys of his age, but in a sweet mild 
way. For we are told that he loved all men, and all men 
loved the pure child who showed by all his acts that he 
had a kind heart, and a fine mind. 



5 2 



The Home at JVaz-a-reth, 



53 



Naz-a-reth stood on high ground, as did most, if not all, 
the towns of the East, and was shut in by the hills a-round. 
There were no schools here, and no chance for boys or 
girls to learn much out-side of their own homes. For they 
would have to pay those who taught them, and were too 




NAZ-A-RETH. 



poor to do that. But each man was as a priest in his own 
house, and taught his boys to read, or read to them from the 
Books of the Law. 

These books were called Scrolls, and were made of 
parch-ment. Parch-ment is made from the skin of calves, 
kids, and lambs, and is so tough and strong that it will last for 



54 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



a long long time. The men who wrote out and taught the 
Laws, that had come down to the Jews from the time of 
Mo-ses, were known as Scribes. Ink, such as we use, was 

not known of in 
those days, and 
some times the 
Scribes smeared 
a board with thin 
wax and wrote 
out with a sharp 
tool the words 
they wished to 
have read. Then 
this wax could be 
rubbed smooth, 
and not a trace 
be left of the 
words that were 
| there; and Da- 
vid had this in 
mind when he 
wrote in one of 
his Psalms, O 
God, blot out my 
sins. And we 
are told that God 
said to Moses, 
He who hath 
sinned, him will I blot out of my book. 

But this wax could not be rolled up and put a- way as the 




car-pen-ter's shop. 



56 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



scrolls were; and on those some sort of juice must have 
been used that left a stain that would not wash out. 

Jo-seph had to work at his trade, and Ma-ry had her 
hands full of house-hold cares, and Je-sus no doubt helped 
both of them at their tasks, and then went with them to 
church on the Sab-bath day. 




CHRIST BROUGHT BY HIS PAR-ENTS. 



It was the rule a-mong all the Jews, rich and poor, 
to have their sons taught some kind of a trade when they 
were twelve years of age, so that they could take care of 
them-selves when they were grown up. As Jo-seph was a 
car-pen-ter, we can but think that Je-sus learned the same 
trade, and worked at it for quite a long term of years. All 
the boys too were well taught in the Law, and knew all the 



The Home vt Naz-a-retk. 



57 



feast days and fast days, and not a few of the Psalms of 
Da-vid. 

Once a year, the Jews went up to Je-ru-sa-lem to keep 
the feast of the pass-o-ver. The time for this is in the 
spring of the year, and when Jo-seph and Ma-ry went they 
took Je-sus with them. He was then twelve years old. 




FORMS OF TAB-ER-NA-CLES, BOOTHS, OR TENTS, USED IN THE EAST. 

The feast was kept up for a week, and the crowds that 
flocked there were so great that there was not room for 
them in the town. So they made booths of mats, boughs, 
and leaves, which gave them a place to rest in by night or 
day. 

When the feast was at an end, Jo-seph and Ma-ry set 
out for their home, with the rest of the Jews that came 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



59 



from the same town, or those near at hand. As thieves 
lay in wait on the road to rob, and if need be, to kill those 
who came their way, it was not safe for men to go off a-lone. 
But they all went in one great band, and marched to the 
sound of drums and sweet toned bells, and stopped now 
and then to eat some of the dates, or cool fruits, and to 
drink from the wells and streams that sprang up in their 
path. 

The wom-en and the old men rode on horse-back, or on 
mules, while the young men, with long sticks in their hands, 
led by a string the beasts whose backs were well packed 
with jugs and all sorts of house-hold goods. The boys 
and girls would some-times walk by the side of their par-ents, 
and when they were tired get a lift on horse and mule. 

Jo-seph and Ma-ry thought, of course, that Je-sus was 
with the rest of the young folks, or with some group of 
friends; but when night came and they could not find him 
they were in great grief. The next day they left their 
friends, and went back to Je-ru-sa-lem, and searched for 
him on the way, but he was not to be seen, and for three 
days they sought for him in vain. 

At last they went up in-to a porch of the Tem-ple, 
where some of the Rab-bis — or learned Jews — had their 
schools, and there they found him calm and well-pleased 
in the midst of the great priests, and seemed more wise 
than they. 

Jo-seph and Ma-ry were awe-struck at the sight, for they 
did not think that a child of theirs w^ould be so bold. Ma- 
ry was grieved too that so good a boy should cause them 
so much pain, and she said to him, Child, why hast thou 




JE-SUS IN THE TEM-PLE. 



The Home at Naz-a-reth 



61 



thus dealt with us? Thy 
fath-er and I sought thee 
with tears. 

Je-sus said to them, 
Why did ye seek me? Did 
ye not know that I am 
where my Fa-ther meant 
me to be? They did not 
know what he meant by 
these words, and thought it 
strange that he should speak thus. 
And he went down with them, and 
came to Naz-a-reth, and was a good 
son in whom no fault could be found. 
He learned to read and to write, 
but more than all that he learned to 
do God's will. Home is the school 
of life. Here we are placed to 
learn to give up all thoughts of 
self, to think more of oth-ers, to 
fix our hearts up-on things that are 
good and pure, and to grow each 
day more and more like Je-sus. 



mmm 



'^^ijftk T*k 



PALMS AND FRUITS OF PAL-ES-TINE. 



62 



The Home at Naz-a-reth 



There were no schools at Naz-a-reth, but if there had 
been Je-sus could not have gone to one, for he was a poor lad. 




But he learned more than could 
be taught in the schools, and there 
was not an hour of the day that he 
did not fit him-self for his life work. 
He took note of the birds, and 
knew their ways, and what they 
were sold for. He knew all a-bout 
the trees, and fruits, and when was 
the time to look for figs. He saw, 
too, how the folks lived, and what 
was the cause of much of their strife 
and ill-will. He knew all a-bout 
seed-time and har-vest, and as his 
feet trod the hill-side he saw in each 
blade of grass, in each ear of corn, 

fresh proof of God's love, and his kind care of man. 

Not a thing did he lose sight of, for all w r ould be of use to 

him in the days to come. 



FIGS AND DATE PALMS. 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



63 



He did not lie round and dream, and fret, or wish that 
he had wealth and could go out in-to the world. He knew 
that where God had put him was the place where he ought 
to be, and he made the best of it, and was the light and joy 
of his home. He worked with his hands, as he grew in 
size and strength, and 
made ploughs or yokes for 
those who had need of 
them. He did not make 
those feel who lived near I 
him that he was bet-ter 
than they, and not one of 
them guessed that the 
youth who grew up in 
their midst was to be 
crowned as king, and 
reign on high. 

Ah, how strange it is 
to think of Je-sus as a 
boy! and what a sweet boy he must have been! not cross, 
or rude, or self-willed, but quick to see where he could be 
of use; prompt to do as he was bid, and at all times full 
of kind thoughts and good deeds. And what a home of 
peace that must have been where Je-sus lived! How 
bright the light that shone a-round! How near to the land 
where God lives, and all good an-gels dwell! 

While Je-sus was at Naz-a-reth, the world out-side 
grew rank with sin, and good men were in great fear of the 
wrath to come. The Jews were hard pushed, and it seemed 
as if their race was to die out, crime was ripe in the land. 




i^,i*rf £ji rS~z. 



THE KOLE-EB BIRD. 




JOHN THE BAP-TIST. 









The Home at Naz-a-rethi 



65 



Men had grown hard of heart, and seemed not to care to 
do right, or to feel the least shame if they did wrong. 
Some change must come soon to break up this sort of Hie, 
and to bring in the pure fresh air where all was foul and rank, 
and not fit to breathe. 




FORDS OF THE JOR-DAN. 



All the years that Je-sus was at Naz-a-reth, John, who 
was near his own age, had led an out-door life, and learned 
the lore of the woods. The men who taught in school or 
in church, were smooth in their speech, and wore long 
robes, and spoke in such a mild way, that those who did 
not care to hear might go to sleep if they chose. 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 67 

But when John spoke, his voice rang through the 
woods, and men came from far and near to hear him, and 
then went home to talk a-bout him. The hour had come 
for him to teach men the way of life, and the force of the 
man soon made it-self felt through that part of the land 
of Ju-de-a. 

Who was he? Where had he come from? Who had 
taught him all these things? He had been at God's school. 
He had lived on plain food, and drank from the pure 
streams that flowed down from the hills. His clothes 
were coarse and plain, and there were no signs of wealth 
by which he might hope to win friends for him-self or his 
cause. But it was soon noised a-bout that in the wild 
lands of Ju-de-a there lived a man whose words it was 
worth while to hear. Rich and poor, scribes and priests, 
Jews and Gen-tiles, all flocked to the fords of the Jor-dan, 
where the stream ran low, as this was the place where he 
preached. 

They were moved by the charm of his voice. His 
words struck hard blows on their hearts of flint, and then 
burnt their way in like coals of fire. They could not get 
rid of them. They had read in the Book of the Proph- 
ets that one should cry out, Pre-pare ye the way of the 
Lord, make his paths straight. That which is low shall 
be raised up, and that which is high shall be brought down, 
the crook-ed shall be straight, and the rough ways shall be 
smooth, and all flesh shall see the glo-ry of the Lord. 

But John said more than this. He used plain words, 
and called them hard names. He told those who were 
proud of their birth, proud that A-bra-ham was their fa-ther. 



68 The Home at JVaz-a-reth. 

that as God made Ad-am out of the dust of the earth, out 
of the stones in the road, he could raise up chil-dren to A-bra- 
ham. They were to look up to God, and to trust in him to 
save them from their sins. For now, he said, is the axe 
laid to the root of the trees, and each tree that brings not 
forth good fruit is hewn down and cast in-to the fire. 

Those who stood near asked, What then shall we do ? 
John said to them, He that hath two coats, let him give to 
him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him give to 
those who have no food. Then the tax-men came to be 
bap-tized, and asked John what they should do to be saved. 
He told them to take no more from men than was their 
due, for he knew that they were fond of wealth, and were 
not just and fair at all times. 

When those came who had learned the art of war, 
and asked John what they ought to do, he told them not 
to use their strength to vex and to harm those they were 
set o-ver, nor to play the spy, and tell false tales, but to do 
the work they had to do, and find no fault with the pay. 

Those who came to hear John preach, thought that he 
might be the Christ whom they had long looked for. But he 
said to them all, I in-deed bap-tize you with wa-ter, but he 
that is to come — whose shoe-strings I am not worth-y to 
un-loose — He shall bap-tize you not with wa-ter, but with the 
Ho-ly Ghost and fire. His fan is in his hand, and he 
will cleanse his floor, and save the wheat, but the chaff he 
will burn up. 

Those who heard, knew what this meant. They did 
not thresh grain in those days as we do now. The floor 
was a round space on the farm, where the ground was 



The Home at Naz-a-reth, 



6 9 



made hard, or paved with stones, and the grain was trod- 
den out by hor-ses or ox-en. Then the chaff was blown off 
with a sort of fan, and the good wheat was saved, and the 
rest burned. So a-bout the axe that was laid to the root 
of the trees. Well they knew that this meant that those 
who did not do right and please God, would be cut down 
in their sins and feel the force of God's wrath. 




BANKS OF THE JOR-DAN. 



The fame of John had reached the small town of Naz- 
a-reth, and Je-sus went out to hear him preach. And 
when he came to the banks ofthejor-dan John knew him not 
for it was the first time the two had met. Yet there must 
have been some-thing in his look which awed the soul of 
John, for when Je-sus came to him to be bap-tized he said, 
Why dost thou come to me ? I have need to be bap-tized 
by thee. 



7° 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



Je-sus said, Let it be so now, that we may both do 
what is right for us. And John bap-tized him. And as 
Je-sus went up out of the wa-ter, a great light shone out of 
the sky, that took the form of a dove, and spread its wings 
of flame o-ver his head. And a voice out of the sky said, 
so that all who stood by could hear it, This is my be-loved 
Son, in whom I am well pleased. 




ONE OF THE FORDS OF THE JOR-DAN. 



The next day, as John stood on the bank of the Jor- 
dan with two of his dis-ci-ples — or those whom he taught— 
he saw Je-sus, and said, Be-hold the lamb of God! And 
the two men, when they heard him, left John and went 






The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



7 r 



af-ter Je-sus. And Je-sus turned and saw them be-hind 
him, and said to them, What seek ye? They said to him, 
Mas-ter, where dost thou live? He said to them, Come 
and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and staid 
with him for the rest of the day, for it was near the hour of 
noon. One of these, named An-drew, went to his broth-er 
Pe-ter, and said to him, We have found the Christ, and 
he brought him to Je-sus. 




^ 



THE RIV-EK JAB-BO K. 



The Jor-dan has its rise in the high hills of the north, 
and flows down in-to the Dead Sea, which the A-rabs 
called the Sea of Lot be-cause it was in the vale of Sod- 
om where Lot chose to dwell. The springs, ponds, lakes, 




ON THE DEAD SEA, 



The Home at Naz-a-reth, 



73 



and streams that feed the Dead Sea are all fresh, and the 
grass grows on their banks, and the birds sing in the trees 
near by. But the Dead Sea it-self is so salt that noth-ing 
can live in it, and no trees or plants can take root on its 
shores save on the east side, where here and there is 
a deep gorge, and fresh wa-ter springs. 




DEAD SEA. 



The north shore of this sea, or lake, is a great mud flat, 
where lie the black trunks and boughs of trees with the 
thick coat of salt on them, that all things have in the reach 
of the spray from the Dead Sea. High cliffs are on the 
west side, but the south shore is low, flat, and like a great 



74 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



marsh, or swamp, and the air not fit to breathe. It was 
for some time thought that the air of the Dead Sea would 
be sure death to all who went near it, and it may have 
been this that gave the sea its name. But the old tale has 
been proved false, for birds fly there and sing their songs, 




DEAD SEA BY MOON-LIGHT. 



and men have gone there, and bathed in the Dead Sea 
that they might find out for them-selves if all that was said 
of it was true. 

Je-sus left the banks of the Jor-dan to seek a place 
where he could fast and pray, and be a-lone with God. 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 



75 



And he went in-to the lands where wild beasts roam at 
will, and was there for for-ty days and for-ty nights, by 




TEMP-TA-TION IN THE DES-ERT. 



which time he was quite weak and in need of food. Then 
the dev-il came and said to him — for he is sure to come 
when we have the least strength — If thou art the Son of 



7 6 



The Home at Naz-a-reth, 



God, speak the word, and change these stones to loaves 
of bread. Je-sus said, It is writ-ten, Man shall not live by 
bread a-lone, but by the words that come out of the mouth 
of God. 




TEMP-TA-TION ON THE MOUN-TAIN. 



Then the dev-il took him up to Je-ru-sa-lem and led 
him to a high place in the Tem-ple, and said to him, If 
thou art the Son of God cast thy-self down, for it is writ- 



The Home at Naz-a-reth. 77 

ten, He shall give his an-gels charge o-ver thee, and in 
their hands they shall bear thee up, so that no harm shall 
come to thee. Je-sus said to him, a-gain it is writ-ten, 
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 

Then the dev-il took him up to the top of a high 
mount, and showed him all the broad realms of the earth, 
and the wealth that was there out-spread. And he said to 
him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt bow 
down to me and serve me. Then said Je-sus to him, Get 
thee hence, Sa-tan be-gone — for it is writ-ten, Thou shalt 
bow down be-fore the Lord thy God, and Him a-lone shalt 
thou serve. Then the dev-il left him, and lo, an-gels came 
and brought him the food of which he stood in need. 

Sa-tan comes to tempt us to do wrong, to make gods of 
our-selves, and to lean up-on our own strength. He brings 
us books that he says will do us as much good to read as 
will God's Word, and when we are weak we can feed up-on 
them. He gives us stones for bread. 

Then he comes and says, Why should you lead a pure 
life, and keep your-self so far from the world and its joys ? 
There is no sense in it. Plunge in-to the depths of sin; 
stain your-self as black as you choose; go with the bad, and 
with those who do dark deeds, and no harm shall come to 
you. Do not lean so much on God. Learn to take care 
of your-self, for in that way shall a man gain strength, and 
be of some good in the world. In this way does Sa-tan 
tempt men out of the straight path. 

When he finds that he can-not win them in this way, he 
leads them to a high place and shows them all the wealth of 
the world. He says to them, Do you see that house there? 



78 The Home at Naz-a-reth. 

It is the home of a rich man; and all those barns and fields 
are his, and he owns a great deal of land. You may have 
as much wealth as he has, ay, and much more, if you will 
lie and steal. He knows how hard men try to get rich, 
and how much they will do to add to their store of wealth, 
and he does his best to make them think that all they need 
in this life is Gold — Gold— and more Gold. 

But that is not so. There is some-thing we need more 
than gold, and with-out which we are poor in-deed. And 
when Sa-tan comes to tempt us, to tell us what good times 
we will have if we make him our king and let him rule us, 
we must drive him a-way, and let him know that God shall 
be first in our hearts. And though we may be weak and 
prone to do wrong, as soon as we turn our backs on Sa-tan, 
and vow that we will serve him no more, God sends his 
an-gels down to give us the strength we need to help us 
fight this foe. 

He meets us at all points, and if we yield to him we are 
lost. He spreads nets for our feet. We must take care 
how and where we walk. He has soft words for the ear. 
We must be deaf to them. He charms the eye with gems 
that flash and blaze; but they are not real gems as we find 
out to our cost, when we have lost the one pearl that was 
worth them all. A pure heart is the pearl of great price. 



CHAPTER III. 

JE-SUS AND JOHN PREACH AND TEACH. 

Je-sus and his friends came to the land of Ju-de-a, and 
he staid there with them, and bap-tized. And John was 
at a place near Sa-lim, where there were fine clear streams 
of wa-ter, and crowds came to him and were bap-tized. 
Now wa-ter will cleanse the out-side skin, but it will not 
make clean the heart. Bap-tism does not mean that one is 
thus made free from sin, but it is a sign that as wa-ter will 
cleanse the flesh, so will Christ make white and clean the 
soul that trusts in him. 

Now at this time there was quite a stir on the part of 
John's friends, be-cause Je-sus drew more men to hear him 
preach. And they came to John and said, Mas-ter, he 
that was with thee on the banks of the Jor-dan, and whose 
fame thou didst spread, now bap-ti-zes, and all men flock 
to him and not to thee. 

John said, A man can have nought but what God gives 
him. You know your-selves that I said, I am not the 
Christ, but I am sent be-fore him. He that hath the 
bride is the bride-groom, but the friend of the bride-groom 
who stands and hears him, has joy at the sound of the 
bride-groom's voice. This my joy is filled to the full. 
My course is run. He must rise, but I must fall. This 
was a form of speech much used in the East. The 

79 



Jesus and John Preach a?id Teach. 81 

Church, or one who gave him-self to Christ, was called 
the bride. Christ was the bride-groom. Friends could 
share in his joy, and be glad that a soul was saved. This 
was the way John felt. And he went on to say that Je-sus 
came from a-bove, and was a-bove all, and to doubt his 
words was to doubt that God was true. For he had been 
sent to speak the words of God. God gave all things in- 
to his hands, and he that be-lieves in him, and trusts in 
him, has a share in God's love; and he who will not heed 
the words of Christ, or do His will, is sure to feel and know 
the wrath of God. 

As soon as Je-sus found out that the Jews thought ill of 
him, he made up his mind to leave the place and go in-to 
Gal-i-lee, lest there should be strife in their midst, and 
John be made to feel that he had been wronged. And as 
he passed by the Jor-dan he saw two men, named 
Si-mon and An-drew, cast their nets in-to the sea, for their 
trade was to catch fish. Je-sus said unto them, Come 
with me, and I will make you fish-ers of men. And at 
once they left their nets and went with him. Was not this 
strange? They did not know who he was, they scarce 
knew what he meant, 'but some-thing in their hearts said 
Go, and they could not stay. That is the way to heed the 
call of Christ. When he says Come, we are to leave the 
nets in which we hope to gain the wealth of the world, 
and go with him, and do his work. The fish these men 
were to catch were the souls of those who led lives of sin, 
and would be lost if some one did not try to save them. 

Then Je-sus went on and came to a place where he 
saw two men in a boat. Their names were James and 
John, and they were at work mend-ing their nets, 



Jesus and John Preach and Teach, 



83 



Je-sus called to them, and they left their fath-er, Zeb-e- 
dee, in the boat with the hired men, and went with him 
whom they knew to be their Lord. For he bore him- 
self like a king, and the light that shone in his face made 
him seem more like God than man. 




BOAT IN SEA OF GAL-I-LEE. 



The next day when he was on his way to Gal-i-lee 
he found Phil-ip, and said to him, Come with me. And 
Phil-ip did so. And he had a friend Na-than-a-el to whom 



84 



Jesus and John Preach and Teach. 



he said, We have found Him of whom Mo-ses in the law 
and the proph-ets did write— Je-sus of Naz-a-reth. _ Now 
Na-than-a-el knew Phil-ip, but did not know Christ, and 
he said, Can a good thing come out of Naz-a-reth? Fhil- 
ip said to him, Come and see. When Je-sus saw Na-tnan- 




CA-NA IN GAL-I-LEE. 



a-el draw near he said to him, Be-hold, a Jew in whom 
there is no guile! He meant that he was a good man, 
who thought not of self, but led a pure life and wished to 
do what was right. And on the way he had stopped 
'neath a fig tree to think and to pray, for his heart was 
moved by the thought that Christ was so near, and that 
he was to see him face to face. 



Jesus and John Preach a?id Teach, 85 

Na-than-a-el heard the words that Je-sus spoke, and he 
said to him, What canst thou have heard of me? Je-sus 
said un-to him, Be-fore Phil-ip called thee, when thou 
wast un-der the fig tree, I saw thee. Na-than-a-el said, 
Mas-ter, Thou art the Son of God, Thou art King of the 
Jews. 

Je-sus said un-to him, Be-cause I said un-to thee, I saw 
thee un-der the fig tree, dost thou believe in me? thou 
shalt see great-er things than these. Tru-ly, tru-ly I say 
unto you, ye shall see heav-en o-pen and the an-gels of God 
that wait up-on the Son of man. These things he was to 
see with the eye of faith, and the thought that Je-sus had 
searched him and knew his thoughts brought Na-than-a-el 
at once to his knees with the cry, Thou art the Son of 
God! 

On the third day there was a wed-ding at Ca-na, a 
small town in Gal-i-lee, and the moth-er of Je-sus was there. 
And they bade Je-sus come al-so, and bring his new 
friends with him. So great was the crowd of guests 
that the wine gave out, and the moth-er of Je-sus said to 
him, They have no wine. Je-sus said to her, Wom-an, 
what is that to thee and me? mine hour is not yet come. 

His moth-er said to the ser-vants, What he tells you 
to do, that do. Now there were in the court-yard six great 
stone pots, or jars, each one of which would hold a great 
deal of wa-ter. Je-sus said un-to the ser-vants, Fill the 
wa-ter pots with wa-ter. And they filled them up to the 
brim. And he said to them, Draw now, and bear to the 
ru-ler of the feast. And they bare it. The ru-ler of the 
feast — the one who had charge of all things — took a taste 



86 



ye-sus and yohn Preach and Teach 



of the wa-ter that was made wine, and knew not where 
it had come from — though the ser-vants who had drawn 
the wa-ter knew. And he called to the bride-groom, and 
said to him, As a rule men first set forth the good wine, 




FILL THE WA-TER-POTS. 



and when their guests have drunk so much that their taste 
is not keen, they bring on that which is worse. But thou 
hast kept the good wine un-til now. 

This, the first sign of his pow-er, was wrought in Ca- 
na, of Gal-i-lee, and it showed forth his glo-ry, and his dis- 
ci-pies be-lieved that he was the Son of God. 



88 Jesus and John Preach and Teach, 

From Ca-na Je-sus went to Ca-per-na-u m, and his 
moth-er, his breth-ren, and his dis-ci-ples we.it with him, 

and they staid 
there for a few 
days. And the 
pass-o-ver of the 
J ews was at hand, 
and Je-sus went 
up with the rest 
of them and to 
the great feast at 
Je-ru-sa-lem. So 
vast was the 
crowd that it filled 
all the space in 
front of the church 
and flowed out 
in-to the streets 
that led up to it. 
On both sides of 
the great gate on 
the east, and as 
far as Sol-o-mon's 
porch, there were 
shops where 
knick-knack s 
could be bought, 
as well as ox-en, 
sheep, and doves to of-fer up on the al-tar. Here, too, 
were banks, where those who had not the right kind of coin, 




RUINS OF CA-NA OF GAL-I-LEE. 



ye-sus and John Preach and Teach. 89 

might change their brass and cop-per for the small sil-ver 
piece they would have to give to the priest. 

But such was the greed of gain, that men grew bold 
and pushed their way in-to the sa-cred parts of the Tem- 
ple, and sold their wares to all who would come and buy. 
Here were pens filled with sheep and ox-en, the stench and 
filth from which must have made its way in-to the church. 
All a-round were ca-ges filled with doves, and the loud 
talk of those who bought and sold, and the clink, clink of 
the coin broke in oft up-on the chants and the prayers of 
the priests, so that they could scarce be heard. 

It was not strange that Je-sus should be wroth at such 
a scene as this. A well-brought-up Jew was made to feel 
that the church of God was a sa-cred place, from which 
the world, and the thoughts of the world, should be shut 
out. It was a great sin for them to buy and sell in this 
place, and they knew it, but so great was their haste to be 
rich, that they paid no heed to the Word of God, or the 
laws laid down for them. The clink of gold was far more 
sweet to their ears than the prayers of the saints, or their 
sweet-toned psalms. Christ can-not be where such things 
are. He must drive them out, or they will drive him out. 
He made a scourge, or whip of small cords and first drove 
out the sheep and ox-en and the low crowd that had charge 
of them. And he threw down the heaps of coin that had 
been piled up, and up-set the ta-bles that had served as 
banks. And he said to those that sold doves, Take these 
things hence; make not God's house a place to buy and 
sell goods. 




TAKE THESE THINGS FROM GOD'S HOUSE. 



ye-sus aud John Preach and Teach. 91 

All did as they were told. Not one dared to turn and 
face his wrath and scorn. But the Jews said, By what 
sign wilt thou show us that thou hast a right to do this 
thing? Je-sus said to them, Pull down this tem-ple, and 
in three days I will raise it up. The Jews said, It took 
for-ty six years to build this temple, and wilt thou raise it 
up in three days? But Je-sus spoke of him-self as the tem- 
ple- — the place where God dwelt — and when he was raised 
from the dead his dis-ci-ples brought to mind these words 
that he spoke to them, and they had faith in the Word 
of God, and in what Je-sus had said. 

Now there were in Je-ru-sa-lem, as there are in all 
large towns, men of strange views, who formed them-selves 
in-to bands, or sects. Those who were well versed in the 
law, and taught it to those who were not, were known as 
Scribes. Those who thought they were bet-ter than the 
rest of folks, be-cause they went to all the fasts and feasts, 
and spent most of their time in church, and made long 
pray-ers so that men could see how good they were, were 
known as Phar-i-sees. Then there were three score and 
ten Jews who formed a sort of court, where men were 
judged by strict rules. This court was called the San-he- 
drim. 

And rich and [poor, scribes and priests, were there at 
the time of the feast, and had faith in Je-sus when they saw 
the won-ders that he did. But Je-sus put no trust in their 
faith, and did not need to be told of their good works, for 
he read the hearts of all men. 

There was a man of the Phar-i-sees named Nic-o-de- 
mus, a ru-ler of the Jews. He came to Je-sus by night, 




JK-SUS AND NTC-O-PE-MTTS. 



Jesus and John Preach and Teach, 93 

and said un-to him, Mas-ter, we know that thou art a teach- 
er come from God; for no one can do these signs that thou 
do-est if God be not with him. 

Je-sus said, If a man be not born a-new he can-not see 
the king-dom of God. Nic-o-de-mus said to him, How 
can a man be born when he is old? Je-sus said, I say to 
thee, If a man be not born of wa-ter and spir-it he can-not 
en-ter the king-dom of God. That which is born of flesh, 
is flesh; and that which is born of the spir-it is spir-it. 
Think it not strange that I said to thee, Ye must be born 
a-new. The wind blows as it will, and thou dost hear the 
sound; but canst not tell whence it comes not where it 
goes. So is he that is born of the spir-it. Je-sus meant 
by this that when God breathed up-on the heart of man, 
the change was so great that he was like one new-born, 
for the things he once loved he loved no more, and his 
whole aim was to serve God and to live with him. 

Nic-o-de-mus asked, How can these things be? Je-sus 
said to him, Thou art a teach-er of the Jews, and hast 
thou not seen these things? I say un-to thee, We speak 
that we do know, and bear wit-ness of that which we have 
seen, and ye be-lieve not. If I have told you of the things 
of earth and ye be-lieve not, how shall ye be-lieve if I tell 
you of the things of heav-en. No one hath gone up to 
heav-en but he that came out of heav-en, the Son of man. 
And as Mo-ses raised up the ser-pent, e-ven so must the 
Son of man be raised up on high, that all those who be-lieve 
in him shall live for-ev-er. 

For God so loved the world that he gave his own Son, 
that all who be-lieved in him should be saved from death 



94 Jesus and John Preach and Teach, 

to live with God in his home on high. For God sent not 
his Son in-to the world to judge the world, but that the 
world through him might be saved. He that be-lieves in 
him is not judged; but he that be-lieves not has been judged 
be-cause he has not had faith in the Son of God. And 
this is the judg-ment, that light is come in-to the world, 
and men loved dark-ness more than they did the light be- 
cause their deeds were wick-ed. For he that is wick-ed 
hates the light, and comes not near it lest his deeds be 
found out. But he that does right and has the truth in his 
heart, comes to the light that his deeds may be made 
known, that men may see the work of God has been 
wrought in him. 

How true this is! How well Je-sus knew the hearts 
of men! Those who love sin, hide them-selves in the day- 
time, and steal out at night like beasts of prey, to do the 
dark deeds they love so well. Those who have done wrong 
fear the Judge and dread to meet him. But those who 
love Christ, and put their trust in him, and try to do as he 
would have them, need have no fear of death, or of Him 
who will judge the world on the last day. 



CHAPTER IV 



JE-SUS AT THE WELL. 



It was the hour of noon. The heat was great. Je-sus 
had been long on the road, and was quite worn out when 
he came near the town of Sy-char {si-kar). And there 
was a well close at hand, or a fount, which was known as 
Ja-cob's well, and as he was tired Je-sus sat down to rest 
on the low wall that was built round it. Those who came 
with him, had gone in-to the town to buy food, and while 
he sat there all a-lone, a wom-an came out of the town to 
draw wa-ter from the well. 

Je-sus said to her, Give me to drink. The wom-an 
said to him, How is it that thou, a Jew, can ask drink of 
of me, a Sa-mar-i-tan wom-an ? for thou must know that 
the Jews have nought to do with our race. 

Je-sus said to her, If thou didst know me, and who it 
is that saith, Give me to drink, thou wouldst have asked of 
him, and he would have given thee liv-ing wa-ter. 

A fresh spring, or a clear stream that ran a-long by 
the banks of trees, was called liv-ing wa-ter. There was 
life and health in it, for those who came to quaff at the 
brink. And this was in her mind when Je-sus spoke of a 
gift of liv-ing wa-ter. How was it to be dug? Where 
was it to come from? 

95 



Jesus at the Well. 



97 



Je-sus meant that those who come to him, and be-lieve 
in him, should have in them a fount of strength and joy. 
He is the source and spring of all life's joys. He is the 




AN OLD WELL. 



gift of God, a well set in a dry place to quench the thirst of 
all man-kind. 

But the wom-an did not know this, and she said to 
him, Sir, thou hast noth-ing to draw with, and the well is 



9 8 



ye-sus at the Well. 



deep; from whence then hast thou that liv-ing wa-ter? Art 
thou as great as Ja-cob who gave us this well, and who 
drank of it him-self, and his sons, and his flocks and herds ? 
Je-sus said to her, He who drinks of this wa-ter shall 
thirst a-gain, but he who drinks of the wa-ter that I shall 
give him shall thirst no more; but the wa-ter that I shall 




RUINS OF THE TEM-PLE OF MA-NAS-SEH. 



give him shall be like a fount whose springs fail not, but 
give life for-ev-er and ev-er. 

The wom-an said to him, Sir, give me this wa-ter, that 
I thirst not, nor have to come all the way here to draw 
from this well. Je-sus said to her, Go, call thy hus-band, 
and come here. The wom-an said, I have no hus-band. 



Jesus at the Well. 



99 



Je-sus saith to her, Thou hast well said I have no hus-band; 
for thou hast had five hus-bands, and he whom thou now hast 
is not thy hus-band. In this thou hast told the truth. 

The Jews paid that Je-ru-sa-lem was the place in which 
to meet and give praise and thanks to God, for there had 




MOUNT GER-I-ZIM. 



Sol-o-mon built his tem-ple. But those of her race thought 
that Mount Ger-i-zim was the true place, for there did Josh- 
u-a bless God, and there did A-bra-ham bring his son 
I-saac, to put him to death if such had been God's will. 



IOO 



ye-sus at the Well. 



Here was a good chance to set this old-time doubt at 
rest. With her hand raised, and her gaze fixed on the 
high mount near them on which could be seen the ru-ins 
of the old tem-ple of Ma-nas-seh, the wom-an said to Je-sus, 
Sir, I see that thou art a proph-et. All my race have been 




FOOT OF MOUNT GEK-I-ZIM. 



wont to wor-ship on this mount; but ye say that Je-ru-sa-lem 
is the place where men ought to wor-ship. 

Je-sus said to her, Be-lieve me, wom-an, that the time 
will come when ye shall not wor-ship God here nor in Je- 
ru-sa-lem. Ye wor-ship that which ye know not, but we wor- 
ship that which we know, be-cause the Jews have been 



Jesus at the Well. 



101 



taught of God. But the time will come when all those 
who wor-ship God will wor-ship in spir-it and in truth. 
They will give their whole hearts to him, for God seeks 
such to wor-ship him. God is spir-it — some-thing that is 
felt though not seen — and they that wor-ship him, must wor- 
ship in spir-it and truth. 




TOP OF MOUNT GER-T-ZTM 



The wom-an moved by his words said to him, I know 
that he who is called Christ is to come, and when he is 
come he will tell us all things. Je-sus said to here, I that 
speak un-to thee am he. 



102 ye-sus at the Well, 

As he spoke these words his friends came back from 
the town, and were shocked to find that Je-sus had talked 
with a wom-an. For the Jews held it to be a sin for a 
Teach-er to speak to a wom-an on the street. Yet none 
of them dared ask him what he sought, or why he talked 
with her. 

The wom-an, with her mind full of what she had heard, 
left her jar by the well and went back to the town, and 
said to those she met on the roads and streets, Come, see 
a man who told me all things that ev-er I did. Can this 
be the Christ? And they left the town at once, and went 
out to meet him. 

In the mean-while the dis-ciples beg-ged him to rest, 
and to eat the food they had brought. But he said to them, 
I have meat to eat .that ye know not. They looked at 
each oth-er and said, Can some one have brought him food ? 
Je-sus said to them, My meat is to do the will of him that 
sent me, and fin-ish his work. Say not ye, There are yet 
four months, and then comes the har-vest? So, I say to 
you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields, for they are 
now white for the har-vest. 

He that reaps is paid for his toil for he brings fruit, 
that is souls, to God; that both he that sows and he that 
reaps may share in the joy of the new life. For that which 
is said is true, One sows, and some one else reaps. I 
sent you to reap where you have not toiled. The work 
has been done, and you are to reap the fruits of their toil. 
These words were meant for all those who came af-ter Je- 
sus to do his work. 



ye-sus at the Well. 



io3 



Some of those who came out from the town to see Je- 
sus, had faith in him be-cause of what the wom-an told. 
But there were still more who be-lieved when they heard 
him preach, and they said to the wom-an, Now we be- 
lieve, not be-cause of what thou told us, but we have heard 




gal-t-t.ee. 



him for our-selves, and know that he is the One who has 
come to save the world. And they urged Je-sus to make 
his home with them, and he staid there for two days. 

At the end of two days he set out once more and came 
in-to Gal-i-lee, and taught from place to place as he went 



ye-sus at the Well. 105 

on his way. His fame had gone out be-cause of the great 
things he had done at Ca-na, and at Je-ru-sa-lem at the 
time of the feast, and crowds thronged to see and to hear 
him. 

He came to the town of Naz-a-reth where he had 
been brought up, and on the Sab-bath day went in-to the 




STREET TN NAZ-A-TCETH. 



church where he used to wor-ship in the days of his youth, 
and stood up to read. On one side of the church sat the 
men; on the oth-er sat the wom-en, with long veils from 
their head to their feet. 



io6 



ye-sus at the Well. 



The Books of the Law, the Books of the Proph-ets, 
the Psalms and the rest of the Word of God, were on 




A JEW-ISH SYN-A-GOGUE, 



rolls of parch-ment, and in charge of the head man of the 
church, who was called the ru-ler. The ru-ler gave to our 



"Jesus at the Well. 107 

Lord a roll, or book, of one of the chief proph-ets. And 
when he un-rolled the book his eye fell upon these words: 
and as he read all those in the church stood up to hear 
him: 

The spir-it of the Lord is upon me, be-cause he sent 
me to bring good news to the poor, to heal the sick, to 
loose the chains of those who are bound, to give sight to 
the blind, to set free those that are bruised, and to tell 
them that Christ has come. 

And he closed the book and gave it back to the ru-ler 
and sat down. And the eyes of all in the church were 
fixed on him, and he said, This day have these words 
come true that ye have heard. He spoke with so much 
grace that for some time they were held spell-bound ; but 
it was not long be-fore their looks changed, and they be- 
gan to show signs of hate. 

And they said, Is not this Jo-seph's son? Did he not 
live here with us, and grow up in our midst ? What does 
he know? How can he teach us? Je-sus said to them, 
No doubt ye will say to me this prov-erb, If thou canst 
heal oth-ers, heal thy-self ; and what thou hast done in Ca- 
per-na-um do here in thine own land. And he said, I say 
to you, No proph-et has fame in his own land. — He meant 
that he could not work here as he could at Ca-per-na-um. 
— But of a truth I say to you that scores of wid-ows were 
in Is-ra-el in the days of E-li-jah, when there was a great 
drought in the land and food was scarce for three years and 
six months. But to none of these was he sent, save to the 
one that dwelt in the land of Si-don. 



io8 



ye-sus at the Well. 



And there were hosts of lep-ers in the time of E-li-sha, 
the prophet, and yet none of them was cleansed but Naa- 
man, from the land of Syr-i-a (seer-e-ak). All those in the 
church, when they heard these things, were filled with 
wrath; and they rose up and cast him forth out of the 
town, and led him to the top of the hill on which Naz-a- 
reth is built, that they might throw him down head-long. 
But his hour had not yet come, and he passed through 
their midst and went on his way. 




HILLS AROUND NAZ-A-RETH. 



Je-sus came to Ca-na where he had changed the wa-ter 
in-to wine. And there was a rich man, at Her-od's court, 
whose son was sick at Ca-per-na-um. When he heard 
that Je-sus had come out of Ju-de-a in-to Gal-i-lee, he went 
to him and beg-ged him to come down and heal his son. 

Je-sus said to him, If ye do not see signs and won-ders 
ye will not be-lieve. The rich man said to him, Lord, 
come down ere my child die. Je-sus said to him, Go thy 
way; thy son lives. The man be-lieved the word that Je- 



Jesus at the Well. 109 

sus spoke to him, and went on his way. And as he was 
on the road to his own home, his slaves met him, and told 
him that his son lived. Then he asked of them the hour 
that he showed signs that he was on the mend. They 
told him the hour that the fe-ver left him, and the fath-er 
knew it was the same hour in which Je-sus said to him, 
Thy son lives. And he and all his house had faith in 
Je-sus, and felt in their hearts that he must be the Son of 
God. 

From Ca-na, Je-sus went on to Ca-per-na-um, and on 
the Sab-bath day went in-to the church and taught there. 
And those that heard him were held spell-bound by the 
charm of his voice, for he taught them as one who had 
strength from on high, and not in the dull way that the 
scribes were wont to speak. 

All at once, in the midst of the hush that filled the 
church, there rose a wild shriek that made each one start 
and shake with fear. A poor man, who had a de-mon in 
him that made him do strange things, had crept in-to the 
church with the throng. And he cried out, Let us a-lone! 
What have we to do with thee, thou Je-sus of Naz-a-reth? 
Art thou come to put us to death? I know thee who thou 
art; the Son of God! 

Je-sus turned, and said to the de-mon in the man, 
Hold thy peace, and come out from him. Then the man fell 
to the ground and writhed and screamed in the grasp 
of the de-mon. But soon he rose up and was cured; and 
all who saw him were struck with awe, and they said, 
What is this word? For with strange pow-er he bids the 
dev-ils come out and they do his will. And his fame 
spread through all the land. 



no Jesus at the Well. 

When Je-sus left the church he went to the house of 
Si-mon. And the moth-er of Si-mon's wife was ill, and 
she had a high fe-ver, and the friends beg-ged him to give 
her ease. Je-sus stood by her bed-side, and touched her 
hand, and the fe-ver left her. And at once she rose up well 
and strong, and made haste to serve the Lord. 

As soon as the sun went down, all they that had sick 
folks brought them to Je-sus, and he laid his hands on 
each one of them and made them well. And de-mons 
came out from those they had held in a strong grip, and 
they cried out, Thou art the Son of God! And he made 
them dumb, be-cause they knew that he was the Son of 
God. 

Worn out with his toil, for they gave him no rest 
night or day, Je-sus rose at dawn, and went out of the 
town to a place where he could rest and pray. But it was 
not long ere the crowd went out in search of him; and Si- 
mon and those that were with him were in great fear lest 
some harm had come to him. They searched high and 
low, and when they found him, they beg-ged him not to 
leave the place, but to spend the rest of his days there. 

Je-sus said to Si-mon and his friends, Come, let us go 
else-where in-to the next towns, that I may preach there. 
For to this end have I come forth. Still the crowd pressed 
on and Je-sus bent his steps to the sea-shore, and while he 
stop-ped to speak to them, Si-mon, An-drew, James and 
John went out in boats to catch some fish. 

As Je-sus spoke, the throng pressed up-on him so that 
there was scarce room for him to stand; and he made a 
sign to Si-mon to push his boat to shore, that he might step 



1 1 



ye-sus at the Well. 




FISH FKOm LAKE OF GAL-I-LEE. 



on board of it and preach to the crowd from that safe 
place. 

When his talk was at an end, he said to Si-mon, Put 
out where it is deep, and let down your nets for a draught 
of fish. Si-mon said, Mas-ter, we have toiled all night, 
and took no fish, but 
at thy word I will 
let down the nets. 
And when they had 
done this, they caught 
such a haul of fish 
that their nets broke. 
And they called to 
James and John to 
come and help them. And they came, and both boats 
were filled with the load so that they be-gan to sink. 

When Pe-ter saw it he fell down at the feet of Je-sus, 
and cried out, Leave my boat, for I am a man of sin, O 
Lord. For he was awe-struck, as were all those with him, 
at the vast haul of fish. And Pe-ter loathed him-self, and 
was in great fear. 

Je-sus said to him, Fear not; from this time forth thou 
shalt catch men. And when they had brought their boats 
to land, they left all their spoils — the fish that lay in heaps, 
and shone in the light of the sun — and went with Je-sus, 
to help him in his work, and to share in his lot. 

Now in all the large towns there was a place where 
the tax was to be paid. The Jews did not like to pay this 
tax, for it made them seem like slaves, and hurt their pride. 
The men who took the tax were called pub-li-cans, and oh, 



ye-sus at the Well. 



113 



how the Jews did hate them! At or near Ca-per-na-um 
Je-sus found a man named Matthew, of the tribe of Le-vi, 
to whom all in that part of the land had to pay their tax. 
Je-sus knew how the Jews felt to such men, and more than 
all to one who was him-self a Jew, and wished to let them 
know that he called all un-to him and looked down on 
none. So he went to the place of toll and said to Mat- 




TIIE DRAFT OF FTSH-ES. 



thew, Come with me. And he left all, and rose up and 
went with Je-sus. There is no doubt but that he had 
heard Je-sus preach. His words may have touched his 
heart. He had made up his mind to give up his sins and 
to lead a pure life, and when Je-sus said to him, Come, he 
could not hold back. Some-thing with-in him forced him 
to go, and do the Lord's work. 



n 4 



ye-sus at the Well. 



We are not told of what he did, or where he went, but 
we know that he must have kept near to Je-sus and seen 
all that he did, and heard all that he said. All thoughts 
of self are cast out of his mind. He had been paid well 




A MAN NAMED MAT-THEW. 



by the Ro-mans, but he gave up wealth, and rank, for the 
sake of Je-sus. And great is the debt the world ows to 
him for the way in which he tells the good news, from the 
birth of Je-sus till his death up-on the cross. 



CHAPTER V. 

THE SER-MON ON THE MOUNT. 

At the close of a day of toil, Je-sus, as was his wont, 
went up in-to the mount to pray, and spent the whole night 
there — a-lone with God. At dawn of day he called to him 
those who had kept with him and shown them-selves to be 
true friends. And from these he chose twelve, to whom he 
gave the name of A-pos-tles (A-pos-sels). Their names were 
Simon, (whom he named Pe-ter), and An-drew, and James, 
and John, and Phil-ip, Bar-thol-o-mew, and Mat-thew, and 
Thom-as, and James, Si-mon and Ju-das, and Ju-das Is- 
car-i-ot. These w r ere to be a band of Christ-like men, to 
train them-selves to do his work, and to be sent out to do 
good in the world. And he came down with them, and 
stood on the low ground, and by this time a vast crowd 
had come up to hear him, and to be brought back to health. 
From the shores of the Sea of Gal-i-lee, from Ju-de-a and 
Je-ru-sa-lem, and from the far off coasts of Tyre and Si-don, 
they had come to touch him. For strength went out from 
him, and the sick were all made well. 

At this time and place Christ gave his well-known Ser- 
mon on the mount, and the crowd sat down on the grass 
to hear what he had to say. And he taught them thus : 

Bles-sed are the poor — those who are meek, and not 
puffed up with pride — for they have wealth that the world 

IK 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 117 

can-not give. Bles-sed are they that mourn — that weep for 
their sins — for they shall be cheered and saved. Bles-sed 
are the meek — the mild — for they shall have joy in this 
world and the next. Bles-sed are they that hun-ger and 
thirst for the Word of God, for they shall be filled. Bles- 
sed are the kind andlgood, for God will be kind and good 
to them. Bles-sed are the pure in heart, for they shall see 
God. Je-sus meant by this that those who were free from 
sin would live near to God here, and see Him face to face 
when they left this world. Bles-sed are the peace-mak-ers 
— those who are at peace with the world, and lead oth-ers 
to make their peace with God — for they shall be called 
Sons of God. Bles-sed are they that are ill used, and set 
up-on when they strive to preach the good news, and to lead 
men to do right, for they shall be well paid for all this in 
the next world. Bles-sed are ye when men shall speak ill 
of you, and vex you, and tell all kinds of lies a-bout you, 
for my sake. Be glad with great joy, he said, for in heav- 
en you will have your re- ward; for so did the Jews of old 
brow-beat and back-bite the proph-ets who were be-fore 
you. 

Ye are the salt of the earth ; but if the salt has lost its 
taste, how can it be brought back a-gain? It is then 
good for nought, but to be thrown out, and crushed un-der 
foot. As salt is used to keep food, and to make it taste 
less flat and stale, so those who love Christ and are called 
by his name, are to keep the world free from sin, and from 
that which spoils and drags men down. 

Ye are the light of the world, Christ went on to say. 
A cit-y set on a hill can-not be hid. Nor do men light a 




THE SER-MON ON THE MOUNT. 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



119 



lamp and set it where it can-not be seen, but put it on a 
stand where it gives light to all that are in the house. So 
let your light shine be-fore men that they may see your good 
works and praise God, whose sons you are. He told them 
that he had not come to do a-way with the Law, but to 
prove that the old Law was but an out-ward sign of the 
new Law of Love, which was to be in their hearts and in 
their thoughts. 




GOLD-EN CAN-DLE-STICKS. 



Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, 
Thou shalt not kill. But I say un-to you, That he who 
hates with-out a cause, shall be in dan-ger of the fire of 
hell. They were not to call names, or to be in a rage, 
but must make friends with those near them, be-fore they 
could hope to make friends with God. 



120 The Ser-mon on the Mount. 

Je-sus told them that they were to sin not with the eye, 
nor to long for things they had no right to. For it was 
far bet-ter for them to give up all the good things of this 
life, than to lose their souls, and be cast out of the joys of 
heav-en. 

The Jews thought that there was no harm in an oath, 
and that they need not keep their word with men, if they 
did not use the name of God. Je-sus said to them, Swear 
not at all. Not by heav-en, for it is the throne of God, nor 
by the earth for it is his foot-stool; nor by Je-ru-sa-lem for 
it is the cit-y of the great King. Nor shalt thou swear by 
thy head, for thou canst not make one hair white or black. 
But let your speech be pure and true, for more than this is 
proof of the sin that is in the world. 

The old Law said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for 
a tooth — what a man does to me must be done to him — 
but the new Law says, Strike not back, nor seek to harm 
those who have harmed thee ; and give up more than the 
law has a right to seize, if by that means you can be at 
peace with all the world. Give to him that is in need, and 
from him that asks of thee a loan turn not thou a-way. 

Ye have heard that it was said, Love your friends and 
hate your foes. But I say un-to you, Love your foes, bless 
them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and 
pray for those who ill use you. That ye may be Sons of 
God; for He makes the sun to rise on the bad and the 
good, and sends rain on the just and the un-just. For it 
is no great thing to love those who love you, for the worst 
of men do that. And if you bow to none but your friends 
and those of your own race, or rank, can you call this a 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 121 

great thing, when e-ven those who know not Christ do the 
same ? Be ye there-lore full of love, since God is love and 
ye are Sons of God. 

Take heed that ye do not your alms be-fore men, to be 
seen of them, for those who do good to win the praise of 
men, do not in this way please God. When, there-fore, 
thou hast aught to give, do not make a noise a-bout it, in 
the church or on the street, as some folks do, that they 
may have the praise of men. This they have in full, but 
will get no more. But when thou hast aught to give, let 
not thy left hand know what thy right hand does. Let 
not those who are near and dear to thee know of all thy 
good deeds. Do them in such a way that they shall not 
be talked a-bout, or get in-to print. Some folks like to 
make a great show when they give to the poor, or to help 
the church. But this is not right. Je-sus says, Let not 
thy left hand know what thy right hand does — give with-out 
noise, or show. Do not hire the work done, but go out and 
do it thy-self, and God, who sees all things, will give thee 
the prize thou hast won at the last day. 

When ye pray, do not be as those who court the praise 
of men, and have no real love of God in their hearts; for 
they love to stand and pray in the church, or in the street, 
that they may be seen of men. But thou, when thou 
pray-est, go in-to thy room, and when thou hast shut 
the door, pray to God, who is there with thee, and He 
will hear thee and be pleased with thee. And when ye 
pray use not words that have no sense, and say them as 
those do who bow down to gods of wood and stone. For 
they think there is a charm in the words, and the more 



122 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



times they say them the more chance there is that they 
will be heard. Be not like them, for God knows what ye 
have need of, be-fore ye ask him. We are not to tell God 
our needs, but to ask him to help us, and to show that we 
trust in him and know that he can do all things. 

Je-sus taught them how 
to serve God in all the acts 
of their lives. They were 
not to lay up stores of wealth 
on earth, where thieves 
break through and steal, but 
were to fix their thoughts on 
things a-bove, and seek to 
lead souls to Christ. No 
man can serve two mas-ters 
^^fcfc —one good and the oth-er 
bad. For if he loved the 
one he must hate the oth-er; 
and ye can-not serve God and 
the world at the same time. 
He told them not to be 
weighed down with the cares 
of life, nor to think too much of what they were to eat, and 
what they were to wear. For He who takes care of the 
birds of the air and gives them their food, and clothes, the 
flow-ers of the field so that their dress is far more rich than 
kings can wear, will feed and clothe all those who put their 
trust in Him. For are not ye more to Him than birds 
and flow-ers, and the grass of the field? Do not fret, then; 
for God knows what ye have need of. Seek first a pure 




THE PART-RTDGE THAT FEEDS ON POOR SOIL. 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



123 



heart. Live each day near to God, and do not show your 
want of trust in Him by doubts and fears. "God reigns, 
and all is right with the world." 

They were not to be too harsh or strict when they 
judged men, and make them out worse than they were. 
But they were first to get rid of their own faults, and then 
they could see clear, and help 
men to get rid of their faults. 
He said they were to ask, 
that is, to pray for what they 
had need of, and God would 
hear and give them in his own 
right way. 

If we ask for that which 
is not for our good, he will 
keep it back from us. 

Some-times they might 
think that God's gifts were 
not the right kind, but if they 
knew how to give good gifts 
to their own chil-dren, how 
much more would God give 
good gifts to those who ask 
Him? They were to do to 
men as they would have men do to them. 

Je-sus said to them, Go ye in through the strait gate : for 
wide is the gate and broad the way that leads to death, 
and strait or nar-row, the way that leads to life. 

All the towns of the East were built with a wall round 
them to keep out the foes. In these walls were gates 




THE PAR-TRIDGE THAT FEEDS ON RICH LANDS. 



I2 4 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



which were kept shut at night, and no one could go in or out 
with-out be-ing seen by the sharp eyes of the watch-men 
who were placed on guard. 

But in the day-time the gates stood wide, and the 
crowds poured in or out from dawn till dark. Je-sus meant 
to teach that the way the crowd went was not the right 
way to go. They are gay, and seek to please them-selves, 
more than they do to please God. It seems to them as if 




STORK. 




y7»> 



the broad road was the right one to take, for there they 
have more room, and can lead a life of ease. And if they 
do wrong, no one will blame them, for all the rest do the 
same. But this broad road leads down hill. We start 
out all right. Then a small sin turns us from the right 
path, and we are caught in the flood-tide that bears us on 
to death. 

These Jews, and all those to whom Christ spoke, thought 
that they were on the right road, and that all these forms, 
and out-side shows, would be sure to please God, and they 



The Ser-mon on the Mount, 



I2 5 



would gain much good from His hands. But the wealth 
they sought was not the kind that makes men rich, and 
that out-lasts the things of time. 

Je-sus meant by the strait gate, a hard rough road, 
where sharp stones bruised the feet, and thornes tore the 
flesh. No one can go through this gate with a load on 
his back. Is it a load of sin? Cast it off. Is it love of 




THE GAL-LI-NULE. 



dress ? There is no chance to show off fine clothes. All 
the way is up-hill; and at first you may say, Why did I 
leave the broad smooth road? and Sa-tan may tempt you to 
turn back. But do not, I beg of you. The first steps 
are hard ; but when strength gives out, or the path seems 
hedged in, pray, as those pray who are in great fear of their 



126 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



lives. Then the way will be made clear, and light will 
shine in where all was dark. Je-sus is near you at all 




HWHP&- 



FLOWERS OF THE FIELD. 



times. If he seems far off, it is be-cause you have turned 
from him. He has not turned from you, and will lead 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



127 



you, and guide you all through this life, and bring you 
home at last. We must lean on him, and trust in him, 
and feel that he knows what we need, and will help us in 
all our straits, if we but call on him. 




WALL OF JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



This is the course that all must take who love Christ. 
Not all those who call on the name of the Lord would be 
saved, but they must show by their lives which was false and 
which were true, and God would judge them at the Last 
Day. 



128 



The Ser-mon on the Mount. 



Then he warned them that he who heard his words 
and did them, was like a man who built his house up-on a 
rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the 
winds blew and beat up-on that house, and it fell not, for 
it was built up-on a rock. And he who hears my words 
and does them not, is like a man with no sense who built 




DA-MAS-CUS GATE, JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



his house up-on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods 
came, and the winds blew, and smote up-on that house and 
it fell ; and great was the fall of it. 

And when Je-sus had brought his talk to a close, all 
those who heard him were in a state of awe, for he taught 
them as one who had come from God, and not as the 



The Ser-mon on the Mount, 



129 



scribes were wont to speak. He knew their lives, all their 
small faults and their great sins, and each word that he 
spoke, like a dart shot from a bow — went straight to its 
mark. 

When he came down from the mount great crowds 
kept near him. And there came to him a lep-er, whose 
flesh was full of white sores so 
that he was shut out of the town, 
and a-way from all his friends! 
And this poor man fell on his 
knees at the feet of Je-sus, and 
cried out, Lord, if thou wilt, 
thou canst make me clean. At 
once Je-sus stretched forth his 
hand and touched the lep-er, 
and he was made clean. Je-sus 
said to him, See that thou tell 
no man, but'go thy way, show/, 
thy-self to the priest, and bring *j 
thy gift of thanks to the al-tar ' 
as Mo-ses bade thee. But the 
man was so glad to be well 
once more that he spread the 
good news a-broad, and great 
crowds came to hear Je-sus, 
and to be healed. Je-sus did not wish men to be drawn 
to him be-cause of the cures he made. It was his aim to 
teach them how to get rid of the plague spots on their 
souls, and how to lead good and pure lives. He wished 
them to take his words home to their hearts, and to show 




EO-MAN CEN-TU-RI-ON. 



130 The Ser-mon on the Mount, 

from day to day that they had done them good, and cleansed 
them through and through. 

When a Jew had the plague he was shut out from the 
town, and a-way from the sight of men. No one went 
near him, to speak to him, or give him food, lest he should 
take the plague him-self or bear it to his home. Je-sus said 
that sin was like this plague. At first it was a small spot 
in the flesh — a small sin — a slight fault — but soon it spread 
and spread un-til there was not a sound place in him. There 
was no known cure for the plague. The poor lep-er had 
to be shut out from home and friends, and to die a slow 
sad death. 

Till Christ came there was no known cure for sin. He 
brought the good news that those who had this worst kind 
of plague might come to him and be saved. Je-sus did 
not go to them, and cleanse them, and cure them. No. 
They must first feel their need of Him, and then show 
their faith in him. This they did when they cried out, 
Lord, if thou wilt thou canst make me clean. 

One of the wise men of old, of whom the Jews thought 
a great deal, had fore-told these things that now took place. 
And his words, and dreams were traced out on a scroll, 
and are kept to this day as part of the Word of God. And 
in that book he says, Hear the word of the Lord. Cease 
to do wrong; learn to do well. Though your sins be as 
bright as a flame of fire, they shall be as white as snow; 
though they be red as blood they shall be as wool. 

Je-sus next set out for Ca-per-na-um, but scarce had he 
reached the town when he was met by some of the chief 
men in the church. They* had been sent by a Ro-man 




SPEAK BUT THE WORD. 



132 The Ser-mon on the Mount. 

cen-tu-ri-on — or cap-tain of a hund-red men — to beg Je-sus 
to heal his slave of whom he was fond, lor he was sick, and 
like to die. The Jews spoke well of the cap-tain, and 
said that he had been kind to their race, and had built them 
a church. And Je-sus said, I will go and heal him. And 
when he was not far from the house, the cap-tain sent friends 
out to him to tell him not to put him-self out to come to 
his home, For I am not good e-nough, he said, to have 
thee come un-der my roof, nor did I think my-self good 
e-nough to come un-to thee. But speak the word, and the 
sick one shall he healed. For I am a man in pow-er my- 
self, and have troops un-der me; and I say to that one, Go, 
and he goes; and to this one, Come, and he comes; and 
to my slave, Do this, and he does it. It was as if he said, 
If I can do so much, can-not Christ, the Son of God, do 
more? Je-sus was struck with these words, and turned to 
those who were with him and said, I have not found e-ven 
a-mong the Jews, such great faith as this. And when 
those that were sent out went back to the house, they found 
the slave who was sick had been made well. 



CHAPTER VI 



JE-SUS AT NAIN 



In a few days Je-sus came to the town of Nain, which 
lies south-east of Naz-a-reth, and a great crowd went with 
him. And as they drew near the gate of the town they 
met a sad train — the friends of a dead youth whom they 




W«" S^'<=V* 



were to lay in a grave out-side the walls. The moth-er 
wept as though here heart would break, for this boy who 
lay dead, was all in all to her. He was her pride and her 
joy. She had hoped to lean up-on him in her old age, but 

133 



134 



Jesus at JVain, 



now this prop was gone. And what made it worse was 
that she was a wid-ow; her hus-band had died, and left her 




THE WID-OW'S SON. 



with this one son. And quite a crowd went out from the 
town with her and shared in her grief. 



Jesus at Nain. 



*35 



When the Lord saw her his heart was moved, and he 
said to her, Weep not. And he drew near, and touched 
the bier — or cof-fin — in which the dead youth lay. And 
as if they were spell-bound, those who bore the bier stood 
still in the road. Then Je-sus said in a calm voice, Young 
man, I say to thee, A-rise. And the dead man sat up, 




PLAINS OF GAL-I-LEE. 



and spoke ; life, health, and strength came back, and joy 
took the place of grief. And great fear fell up-on all who 
saw what had been done, and they gave praise to God. 
And the fame of this great deed went out through all the 
lands, near and far. 

In the mean-time John had said things that did not 
please Her-od, and the king had shut him up in jail, and 
would have put him to death, but that he feared the Jews, 
some of whom thought that John was a great proph-et. 



i 3 6 



Jesus at Nain, 



While in jail John heard of the great deeds that Je-sus 
had done, how he cured those who were sick, and brought 




HOUSE OF A RICH MAN. 



the dead to life, and strange thoughts came in-to his mind. 
And he sent for two of his friends, and bade them go to 



Jesus at Nain 



137 



Je-sus, and told them what to say. And they came to Je- 
sus and said, Art thou in-deed the Son of God — He 
that is to come — or are we still to look for him ? And in 
that hour he cured the sick, and those that had plagues, or 
were vexed by de-mons, and to those that were blind he 
gave sight. 

Then Je-sus said to the men whom John had sent, Go 
your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and 
heard ; how the blind see, the lame walk, the lep-ers are 




EAST-ERN SAN-DALS. 



cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor 
have the good news preached to them. 

When the men had gone, Je-sus talked to the crowd 
and told them of him-self and of John. John was like the 
light that sprang up in the east to tell of the dawn of a new 
Day; like the voice of one sent on a-head, to make it known 
that the king was on his way, and would come by that 
same road. God had sent both of them, and they that 
were wise would hear the truth from each, and take their 
words to heart. 



138 



ye-sus at Nain. 



As yet all had gone well, and there had been no strife 
be-tween the sects of Jews, some of whom had strict views, 
and held to the old laws and would have nought to do with 
new schools of thought. 

At this time one of these Jews named Si-mon, a rich 
man, asked Je-sus to come to his house and eat with him. 
And Je-sus went. 



siilH 



i^ 



v\V 







COUCH USED AT MEALS. 



Now it was the rule that when a guest of high rank 
came to a house, he was met by slaves, who brushed the 
dust from his clothes and poured oil on his hair and beard 
— rare oil that had a sweet smell — and he was then led in 
state to his seat at the board. But none of these things 
were done to our Lord, and he went in with the rest of the 
guests; but first left his san-dals, or low shoes, at the door, 
and took the place that was left for him. 




SHE BOWED HER HEAD WITH SHAME. 



140 



Jesus at Nain, 



In the East, in the time of our Lord, they did not sit in 
chairs when they took their meals, but lay on a long couch 
placed round the ta-bles. As they lay on their side, one 
hand would be free, and their feet would be on the out-side 
of the couch, or bed. As it was warm in these lands the 

doors were not shut, and 
while the feast went on a 
poor wom-an, who had 
led a life of sin, stole in-to 
the house, for she had 
heard that Je-sus was 
there. Oils were much 
used in the East, both on 
the hair, and on the skin 
to keep them smooth and 
soft. Some could be 
poured from flasks; but 
some was made more firm, 
like an oint-ment, and the 
box that held it was oft a 
gem in it-self. 

This poor soul who 
came in search of Je-sus 
brought with her a box of 
rare oint-ment, rich with 
spike-nard. It was all she had. And when she found him 
whom she sought, she stood back of him, and bowed her 
head with shame at the thought of her sins. Tears drop- 
ped from her eyes and fell down on his feet, and she wiped 
them dry with the hair of her head, and kissed his feet, and 
put some of the oint-ment on them. 




SPIKE-NARD. 



ye-sus at Nain. 141 

Si-mon, when he saw this, said to him-self, If this man 
were a true proph-et, he would know what kind a wom-an 
this is that has touched him. For her sins have been 
great. Je-sus, who knew his thoughts, said, Si-mon, I 
have some-thing to say to thee. And he said, Mas-ter, 
say on. Je-sus said, There was once a man who had 
lent mon-ey to two men, and they were still in debt to 
him. One owed much more than the oth-er, but when he 
found that they could not pay him he for-gave them both. 
Tell me, then, which one will love him the most ? 

Si-mon said, I sup-pose that he to whom he for-gave 
the most. Je-sus said to him, Thou art in the right. And 
he turned to the wom-an, and said to Si-mon, Look at 
her. I came in-to thine house and thou didst give me no 
wa-ter to wash my feet, but she has bathed my feet with 
tears, and wiped them with her hair. Thou didst not 
meet me and kiss me on the face, but since the time I 
came in-to thine house she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 

Thou didst not pour oil on my head, as a sign that 
thou wert glad to have me for thy guest, but she has 
poured out her high-priced oil up-on my feet. So I say 
un-to thee, Her sins, great though they be, are all wiped 
out. The debt is paid with love — for she loved much. 
One who does not feel his sins — the debt that he owes — has 
not much love in his heart. And he said to the wom-an, 
Thy faith has saved thee; go in peace. And those who 
sat at meat with him, said to them-selves, Who is this, 
that takes up-on him-self the right to for-give sins ? 



CHAPTER VII 



JE-SUS BY THE SEA SIDE. 



We are told that Je-sus taught in par-a-bles; and as no 
one had taught in that way be-fore, it was not strange that 
crowds should flock to hear him. What is a par-a-ble? 
It is a tale told of real life, in which there is some-thing 
that each one who hears can take to heart. There is more 
meant by the words than one would think who does not 
read them with care, or hear them as they ought to hear. 

Je-sus knew how to use words to paint scenes that stand 
out as bright as those that hang on walls in frames of gold. 
He took his texts from things that were close at hand, and 
as they stood out in the fields one day, when the crowd 
pressed close to him to hear his voice, he spoke thus: 

A man went forth to sow seeds. And as he sowed, 
some fell by the way-side, and those who passed by trod 
up-on them and the birds came and ate them up. And 
some fell on a rock, where they had not much earth, and 
the heat of the sun scorched them ; and as they had no roots 
they soon dried up. Some fell in the midst of thorns, and 
the thorns grew up with them, and choked the good seed 
so that they came to nought. But some fell on good ground, 
and sprang up, and bore rich fruit. And when he had 
said these words, he cried out, He that hath ears to hear, 
let him hear; which meant, Take heed how ye hear. 



142 



i 4 4 



ye-sus by the Sea Side. 



Some drew near and asked Je-sus to tell them what he 
meant; and to make it more plain, he said, The seed is the 
Word of God. Those that fall by the way-side are those 
that hear the word of God, but pay no heed to it. They 
do not care for such things, but love the gay world, and 
mix with those who are in the broad road that leads to 




AN EAST-ERN SOW-ER. 



death. Here all good thoughts are crushed out of them, 
and at last they give them-selves up to the world, and 
are not found with those who love God and strive'to do 
His will. 

Those on the rock, are those who at first hear the word 
with joy, and go to church, and for a while give them-selves 



ye-sus by the Sea Side. 145 

up to good works. But as they have no roots — as the 
love of the truth does not sink deep in their hearts — false 
friends come and tempt them to join in with those who love 
the world and the things that please the flesh, and soon 
they lose all care for their souls, and they dry up and bring 
forth no bloom nor fruit to please Him who made them. 

The seed which fell a-mong thorns are those who, 
when they have heard the Word of God, go forth in-to the 
world and mean to lead right kind of lives. But their 
cares, and their wealth, the gay scenes and gay sounds that 
charm the ear and the eye, take up so much of their time 
and thoughts, that they have no chance to do God's work, 
or to lead souls out of the mire of sin. They have no time 
to go to church, scarce time to pray, and the thorns of this 
life — small cares, the love of wealth, the joys that please, 
yet leave a sting — -soon choke them so that they bring forth 
poor fruit, and do not much to please God. 

But the seed which falls on good ground, is a type of 
the Word of God that falls in-to a good and true heart, and 
takes root there. It is much prized, and is dwelt up-on 
night and day, warmed with the fires of love, wet with the 
dew of tears. Such an one hears the word, as if God said, Do 
thou this ! and he goes and does it and asks God to help 
him. In this way, in God's good time, he brings forth 
fruit ; that is, he shows by his life that he lives near to God, 
and that God is first in his thoughts. 

Take heed how ye hear; for he that hath shall have 
more giv-en to him ; and he that hath not, from him shall 
be ta-ken a-way e-ven that which he seems to have. Christ 
meant by this that those who had the least chance to do 



146 



ye-sus by the Sea Side, 



good, and the least to do with, would be helped, and made 
rich in gifts that do good to the soul. When we are weak, 
and think not much of our-selves, then are we made strong, 



\ 



and the pow-er of 
God is shown forth in us. 
Those who are not true, who 
make be-lieve they love God, shall 
find them-selves with no hope to 
cling to in the Last Day, when 
God shall judge the world. 

Then Je-sussaid, The King- 
dom of God — or Christ in you- — 
is like to a man who sowed good 
seed in his field, but while he 
and his men slept, a foe came 
and sowed tares in the midst of 
the wheat, and then went his way. 
Now tares are weeds that grow 
up and look so much like wheat, that it is hard to tell them 
a-part. But there is no good grain in them. And when 
the wheat sprang up and was ripe, then came the tares up 




THE WHEAT AND THE TAKES. 



Jesus by the Sea Side. 147 

with them. The work-men come to the farm-er and say to 
him, Sir, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? from 
whence then come these tares? He saith to them, A foe 
hath done this. The men say to him, Shall we go then 
and pull them up? He saith to them, No; lest while ye 
pull up the tares, ye should pull up the wheat that is with 
them. Let both grow side by side un-til the har-vest, and 
in the time of the har-vest I will say to those who reap, 
Take up first the tares and bind them in sheaves to burn ; 
but put the wheat in-to my barn. 

Then Je-sus told what was meant by the par-a-ble of 
the tares of the field. He that sows the good seed is the 
Son of man. The field is the world, and the good seed 
are the Sons of God ; but the tares are the Sons of the 
wick-ed one. The foe that sowed them is the dev-il; the 
har-vest is the end of the world, and the reap-ers are the 
an-gels. As there-fore the tares are all picked up and 
burned in the fire, so shall it be at the end of the world. 
The Son of man shall send forth his an-gels, and they shall 
cast out of heav-en all those who have kept oth-ers from 
Christ, or walked in the ways of sin, and they will be with 
the lost ones, who weep and mourn when it is too late. 
He said that men were not the ones to judge, for they 
might call the wheat, tares, and the tares, wheat: they 
might call those bad who were good; and might think 
those were good, whom God knew were as bad as they 
could be. But all would be known at the Last Day, and 
men would be judged by God who knows all hearts. 

Then Je-sus said, The king-dom of God — or Christ in 
you — is like to a grain of mus-tard seed, which a man took 



148 



ye-sus by the Sea Side, 



and sowed is his field. It is the least of all seeds, but 
when grown it is the size of a tree, so that the birds come 
and make their nests in it. Je-sus meant by this that 
though one's faith was small — like to the least of seeds — it 
must not be looked down on with scorn, for if put in the 




GREAT SPOT-TED CUCK-OO. 



right soil, it would grow like a tree, and spread it-self, and 
do great good in the world, and bring souls to Christ, and 
add strength to his cause. 

Je-sus said the King-dom of God was like to leav-en, 
or yeast, which a wom-an took and hid, in three quarts of 



yes ?cs by the Sea Side. 149 

meal, till the whole was made light. The good we do in 
Christ's name may seem lost for a while — all our work 
seems in vain — but in time it will break through the mass 
of sin by which it is held, and spread out, and be like the 
bread of life to souls that starve for this kind of food. 

Je-sus saith, the King-dom of God is like gold or sil-ver, 
or rich gems that are hid in a field, which when a man 
finds he is filled with joy. It is worth more than he can 
pay, but he goes and sells all he has, and buys that field, 
and is rich for all time. Then Je-sus said, The King-dom 
of God is like to a man who bought and sold pearls. We 
are to think that he was a good judge of pearls, and went 
far and near to add them to his stock. One day he found 
a pearl of great price, worth more than all the rest that he 
had on hand. It was a great prize, and he must have it. 
What did he do ? Why, he sold off all the pearls and gems 
he had in his store, all the land he owned and the house he 
lived in, and bought this one pearl, and was glad all the 
rest of his days. 

The pearl of price is, Je-sus in our hearts. With him 
there we are rich for all time, though we own not house 
nor lands, and are poor in this world's goods. 

Then Je-sus told them that the King-dom of God was 
like to a drag-net cast in-to the sea, which takes in all 
kinds of fish. When it is full, and drawn up on the beach, 
the men sit down and pick out the good and throw the bad 
a-way. So shall it be at the end of the world. 

When night came on Je-sus longed for rest, and to be 
free from the crowd which would not leave him. That he 
might be where it was calm, he said to those with him in 



150 ye-sus by the Sea Side. 

the boat, Let us cross the lake; and they set out to do so. 
But ere they could push off one who was a Scribe came to 
Je-sus and said, Mas-ter where thou go-est I will go. Je- 
sus said to him, The fox-es have holes, and the birds of the 
air have nests, but the Son of man hath not where to lay 
his head. Je-sus meant that those who went with him 
must give up wealth and pride, and all hope ol gain, such 
as men think much of in this world. And the Scribe did 
not go with Je-sus. 

Next came one of the Twelve and said to him, Lord, 
let me first go home and see my fath-er laid in his grave, 
then I will go with thee. But Je-sus said to him, No, let 
the dead be; but go thou and preach the good news. 

Then one came who said, Lord I will go with thee, 
but first let me go and bid good-by to those that are at my 
house. Je-sus said to him, No man that puts his hand to 
the plough, and then looks back, is fit to work with me in 
my field. The plough used in the East was apt to up-set, 
and the man who set out to guide it must use both hands 
and eyes. It was as if Je-sus said, If your heart is not 
with me you can-not do my work. 

At last the sails were spread, and the boat was off; and 
ere they were far from shore Je-sus had lain down in the 
stern of the boat and was soon in a deep sleep. When 
they set out the lake was calm, but all at once a fierce 
storm of wind swept down and drove the waves in-to the 
boat. Those on board were in great fear, lest they should 
drown. And they came to Je-sus, and found that he had 
slept through all the noise. And they woke him ; and cried 
out Lord ! Lord ! Save us, or we sink ! Then he rose and 



yes us by the Sea Side. 



i£;i 



gazed out up-on the waves, and said in calm clear tones, as 
one might hush a child to rest, Peace, be still ! And at 
once the wind went down, the waves ceased to toss, and 




LORD, SAVE US. 



there was a great calm. And he said to them, as he says 
to all of us who are in the midst of the storms of life, Where 
is your faith ? Am I not with you ? And the men in the 



IC2 



ye-sus by the Sea Side. 



boat, as they saw the stars break through the clouds, were 
filled with awe and said in low tones, Who then is this? 
for he makes the wind and the sea do as he bids them. 

At dawn they came to the west side of the lake, and as 
soon as Je-sus step-ped out of the boat there met him a 
mad-man who came out from the tombs, or caves, where 




TOMBS. 



the dead were placed. There he made his home. More 
than once he had been bound with chains, but he broke 
them a-part, and was so wild that no man could tame him. 
Night and day he was on the hills and in the caves, and 
he cried out and cut him-self with stones. But when he 
saw Je-sus — while he was still a long way off — he ran and 



jfe-sus by the Sea Side. 153 

threw him-self at his feet, and cried with a loud voice, 
What have I to do with thee, thou Son of the most high 
God ? Let me a-lone ! 

Je-sus said to the man, What is thy name? But he 
could not tell it. He did not know who he was when in 
his right mind. And he beg-ged Je-sus not to let the de- 
mons with-in him throw him down the steep cliff. And 
there was a herd of swine that fed on the mount, and the 
de-mons beg-ged Je-sus to give them leave to go in-to 
them. So Je-sus gave them leave, and the de-mons went 
out of the man and in-to the swine, and they rushed down 
the steep place in-to the lake, and were drowned. When 
those that fed them saw what had been done, they fled, 
and told it to all near and far. And crowds flocked out to 
see him from whom the de-mons had gone out, and they 
found him who had once been a mad-man now clothed and 
in his right mind; and he sat at the feet of Je-sus like a 
child. And they were awe-struck. And those who had 
seen what Je-sus had done, told them by what means the 
mad-man had been cured. Then all who dwelt in that 
part of the land beg-ged Je-sus to leave their coasts, for they 
were in great fear of him. They thought more of their 
swine — their sins and the base things of this world — than 
they did of Je-sus, whom they wished to get rid of. And 
he turned and left them. He will not force him-self up-on 
those who do not want him. In vain had he sought rest 
at Gad-a-ra ; and he went* back to the boat with a sad heart. 

These Jews were no worse than men in our day who 
are sunk so low in vice and crime that they have no thought 
or care for Je-sus. They fear that if He should come in 




BE-HOLD I STAND AT THE DOOR. 



ye-sus by the Sea Side, 155 

their midst they would lose some of the wealth they have 
gained. For they have grown rich, not in the right kind 
of a way; they have not soiled their hands with work, but 
have learned to cheat and to rob those who put their trust 
in them, and are as low-lived as the swine that eat all that 
comes in their way. They have no wish to be fed with 
such food as Christ brings; they care not for a well taught 
mind, a well trained heart, or for aught that will help them 
out of the mire and filth in which they dwell. 

Je-sus may knock at their door, and they rise not to let 
him in. 

He may speak to them, but they hear not his voice. 

He may weep be-cause they are so dead in their sins, 
but they care not. They are in-deed worse than mad-men. 
For a mad-man is sick, when he is not in his right mind. 
He knows not what he does. But these men know, and 
must take the blame to them-selves if Je-sus leaves them to 
their fate. They drive him from their homes, and their 
haunts, and treat him with scorn, and by their speech and 
their acts prove that they are not with him, and will have 
none of him. 

How sad Je-sus must feel when he has to turn from 
those he fain would save. 

The man whom Je-sus had cured — the one whom he had 
saved — begged to go with him. But Je-sus sent him 
a-way, and said to him, Go home to thy friends, and tell 
them what great things the Lord hath done for thee. And 
he went his way and spread the news through all the town, 
and told how he had been freed from his sins. 



CHAPTER VIII 



JE-SUS AT CA-PER-NA-UM, 



Je-sus crossed the Lake, and when the boat came on 
shore he went at once to the house where he stayed when 
at Ca-per-na-um. And as soon as it was known that he 
was in the place, crowds flocked there and filled the house 
and the court-yard, so that the way to the door was blocked 
up. 

And there was a man, who had been sick for some time, 
and could not move without help. Four friends brought 
him on a bed, and when they found they could not get near 
the door, nor reach Je-sus through the crowd, they went 
up on the house-top, and took the tiles from the roof, and 
let him down on his bed in front of Je-sus. 

Je-sus was pleased at this sign of faith, and he said to 
the sick man, Son, be of good cheer — fear not — thy sins are 
wiped out. To for-give sins, is to wipe them out so that 
they leave no mark, nor stain, and to think no more of 
them. 

Some of the Scribes, who thought more of old forms 
than new ones, and were on the w r atch to find fault with 
Je-sus, when they heard his words, said to them-selves, 
Who is he that dares speak thus, when none but God can 
for-give sins ? 

Je-sus, who knew their thoughts, said to them, What 



ye-sus at Ca-fier-na-um. 157 

think ye in your hearts? Is it more ea-sy to say, Thy sins 
are for-giv-en thee; or to say, A-rise and walk? But 
that ye may know that I am the One who has pow-er on 
earth to for-give sins, he said to the sick man who could 
not move with-out help, A-rise, take up thy bed, and walk. 
And the man rose to his feet, took up the light bed on 
which he had lain, and as the crowd made way for him he 
went to his own house, and praised God as he.went. And 
the crowd when they broke up to leave the place, said in 
tones of fear and awe, We have seen strange things to-day. 
The house where Je-suswas at this time, was built low 
like most of the hous-es in the East. The rooms were all 
on the ground floor, and each one led out in-to a large hall 
or court, where Je-sus stood. Steps on the out-side of the 
house led up to the roof, for in the East the house-tops are 
made much use of. For men sit there to cool off at the 
close of the day, and at times sleep there for the whole of 
the night. It was not a hard task for strong men to tear 
up the roof to let their friend down at the feet of Je-sus. 
But that they thought of this thing, and cared to do it, 
shows how much they thought of their friend, and how 
great was their faith in Je-sus. It was some-thing to push 
their way through the crowd. But they did more than 
that. They bore the sick man up the stairs, and on to the 
roof. They might have left him there. Je-sus might have 
said the words he did, might have bid the man get up and 
walk then and there. For he knew all that took place, and 
naught was hid from him. But he wished the crowd to 
see with their own eyes what these men did, and to know 
how great was the cure. And it was to teach them and us 
more than can be learned at the first view. 



158 • ye-sus at Ca-f>er-na-um. 

There are two ways — three ways I should say — in which 
to read a book. In the first place we read it with our eyes. 
There are the words in plain print, and we fix our gaze on 
the page, and read on from line to line. 

The next way is to read with the mind; that is, to think 
of what we have read. As the cow chews her cud, so that 
the milk she gives may be rich and sweet, we must chew the 
thoughts that are brought to the mind, so that we may grow 
by them our-selves, and teach young and old the truths that 
have been made plain to us. 

There is still a third way to read, and that is with the 
heart : to be so in love with the book and the truths it may 
teach, that a light is thrown on the page and words and 
scenes stand out far more clear and plain than they do to 
those who just read with their eyes and their brain. 

We are to learn from this scene that some men are so 
bound to their sins that they can-not get a-way from them. 
They have lost all the strength of will they once had, and 
can-not move hand or foot to get them out of the slough in 
which they have been cast. If left to them-selves they 
would not be saved at all. Some one must go out to seek 
him. Friends must bring him to Je-sus. They may coax 
in vain. May plead in vain. He may want to be saved, 
but will say, I have sin-ned too long. There is no hope 
for me. I can-not turn my hand to do good deeds, nor can 
I walk in the right way. Let me die on the bed where I 
have lain so long. 

Do his friends leave him there? Not if they are true 
friends. They take hold of him, sins and all, and bring 
him to Je-sus. They pray with and for him. Crowds 



Jesus at Ca-fter-na-um. 159 

may push them back. The way to Je-sus may be blocked 
up ; his face may be hid from us for a-while; we fail to hear 
the sound of his voice. But if we stop there, or turn back 
we are lost. 

These friends push on. They lead the man of sin up 
heights that bring him a-way from the crowd, and in-to 
pure fresh air. They care not what the world may say or do. 
It can-not keep them back from Christ. They have fought 
their way through, but there is still more to do. Great 
faith show T s it-self by great works. They must break down 
all that keeps this soul from Je-sus. They have brought 
the man to the house-top but they can-not leave him there. 
He is still sick, though in a high place. 

This man was a Jew and could not give up the old 
time laws which had comedown to him from Mo-ses, and 
hung like a veil be-tween him and Je-sus. 

But friends who knew that these old laws must give 
way to new ones, broke through the wall, or veil, and let 
the man down at the feet of Je-sus. We must take a low 
place if we wish to get near him. 

We are led to think that this poor man, bound as he 
was by his sins, must have longed to be free. For when 
Je-sus bade him get up and walk, he stood on his feet at 
once, and took up the bed on which he had lain for years. 
This showed that he had strength now to break loose from 
the ties that had held him, and to be a new man in Christ 
Je-sus. And as he went on his way he gave thanks to 
God. 

From Pe-ter's house Je-sus went down to the sea shore, 
and taught there for a-while, and then went to the house of 



160 Jesus at Ca-fter-na-um. 

Mat-thew, who had made a great feast for his friends. 
And as he had been a sin-ner him-self, his friends would, of 
course, be of the same stamp. Yet Je-sus and the Twelve, 
with no thought of scorn or hate, sat down with them at 
the feast. And the strict Jews and their Scribes found 
fault with them, and said, Why do ye eat and drink with 
tax-ta-kers and vile men ? 

Je-sus said to them, They that are well need no doc-tor; 
but they that are sick do. I am not come to call the good 
to turn from their ways, but to urge the bad to give up 
their sins and to lead new lives. 

He said that God thought more of kind deeds than he 
did of the blood of beasts, or the oil that was poured out 
for him. And some of those who had been taught by 
John, came to Je-sus and said, We fast twice a week; but 
none of those whom thou hast taught, and who are with 
thee, keep the fasts as we do. 

Je-sus said there was no need for the friends of the 
bride-groom to mourn when the bride-groom was with 
them. This was a form of speech, which meant that a fast 
was a sign of grief, but those who are with Christ — whose 
hearts are joined to his as is the bride's to the bride-groom's 
have no need of tears. But the days will come, he said, 
when the bride-groom shall be ta-ken from them, and then 
will they fast. 

This was the first time that he gave out a hint of his 
death ; but the truth was veiled in such a way that it was 
not clear to their minds. Je-sus said, No man puts a patch 
of new cloth on to an old robe, for the piece of new cloth 
tears a-way the old, so that the rent is made worse. Nor 



ye-sus at Ca-fler-na-um. 161 

do men put new wine in-to old wine-skins, lest the new 
wine, which has not ceased to swell, should burst the old 
wine-skins and be lost. But they put the new wine in-to 
fresh wine-skins, and both are saved. Je-sus meant by 
this that it would not do to put the new life in with the old 
forms. But the man must be freed from these forms which 
hold him in, and spoil the good work he might do, and 
must give his whole heart to the new truths, and by his 
acts and his thoughts must show that he is filled with the 
wine, "which makes glad the heart of man." There is but 
one kind of wine that does this, and that is the love of 
Je-sus. 

While Je-sus yet spoke in these strange words ; there 
came to him a man named Jai-rus, one of the chief men of 
the church, and much thought of by the Jews. And he 
threw him-self at the feet of Je-sus, and, in a burst of grief, 
cried out, My child — the dear girl whom I love so well — 
lies at the point of death ! I pray thee, that thou come and 
lay thy hands on her that she may live ! 

Je-sus rose at once and went with him, and the Twelve 
kept near him, and were hard pushed by the dense crowd 
that was close at their heels. 

In this throng was a wom-an who had been sick for 
twelve years. In vain had she sought help from doc-tors 
of great fame and great skill. But now she had spent all 
she had, and was worse off than she was be-fore. She had 
heard of Je-sus, and tried to push her way through the 
crowd that she might touch his robe. For she said to her- 
self, If I but touch his robe, I shall be made well. 



1 62 ye-sus at Ca-per-na-um. 

It is as if some of us said, I want to be good. I am 
sick of my sins. I have been to this one and that one — 
and heard them all preach — but all they have said has done 
me no good. I lose strength each day, and if I am not 
helped soon I shall die. 

We have spent all our gold, and poor, and with no 
pride in our-selves, we kneel down and pray God to for-give 
our sins, and save us at last, for Christ's sake. This is 
what is meant by the hem of his robe. The wom-an must 
kneel to touch it, or at least stretch out her hand, and this 
act would show that she had faith in Je-sus, and a heart 
warm with love. 

With her to will, was to do. If the crowd kept her 
back so that Je-sus could not touch her, she would touch 
him. How oft we miss some great good, be-cause we are 
loath to go out of our way to get it. We wait to do some 
great deed, to have some-thing come to us, and so lose the 
chance to win the prize that may be ours if we will but 
stretch out our hand to take it. 

This wom-an touched the robe Je-sus wore, for she had 
heard of him, and knew that he could cure her. 

At once- — while this thought was in her mind — she felt 
a new sense of health. She was cured of that which had 
caused her so much grief and shame for the past twelve 
years of her life. 

Je-sus, who felt that strength from him had gone forth, 
turned round and faced the crowd, and said, Who touched 
my robe ? Those near him said it was scarce worth while 
to ask such a thing in the midst of so great a throng. But 
Je-sus knew that the touch he felt was the touch of faith — as 




WHERE THE JEWS WENT TO WEEP AND WAIL. 



164 Jesus at Ca-fier-na-wn. 

though one said, Help me, Lord! — and he looked round 
to see who had done this thing. 

The wom-an, filled with shame and fear, flung her-self 
at his feet and told him all the truth. She feared his wrath ; 
it might be that her touch had done him harm, and if she 
owned her guilt he might not be harsh with her. But if 
she had dared to look up she would not have meet the face 
of a stern judge; and how sweet and soft must have been 
the sound of his voice, when he said, My child, thy faith 
hath saved thee ; go in peace ! 

In the mean-time the poor ru-ler whose child was sick 
un-to death was in a sad state of mind, but did naught to 
urge his claim. And there came those from his house who 
said, The child is dead. It is of no use to both-er the 
Mas-ter. 

Je-sus heard their words, and said to Jai-rus, Fear not; 
trust in me. When they came to the house, they found it 
filled with those who in the East were hired to weep and 
mourn o-ver the dead. And they made a great noise. 
Je-sus stop-ped at the door, and brought the crowd out-side 
to a stand-still. Then he called Pe-ter, James, and John 
to his side, and the four went in-to the house. 

His first care was to still the noise; and he said to 
those who wept and wailed, and played on the flute, 
Why do ye make such a din ? and why do ye weep ? The 
child is not dead, but is a-sleep. And they laughed him 
to scorn. But when he had sent the crowd out of the 
house, he took the fath-er of the child and her moth-er, and 
those that were with him, and went in-to the room where 
she lay. 




THE DAUGH-TER OF JAI-RUS. 



1 6(5 ye-sus at Ca-fter-na-um. 

He took the cold dead hand in his and said, Rise, my 
child. And at once the child got up and walked, and was 
just as well and strong as she had been. For she was 
then twelve years of age. And her fa-ther and moth-er 
when they saw her were awe-struck, and knew not what to 
say. Je-sus told them not to talk much a-bout what had 
been done, but to give the child some-thing to eat, for she 
was weak yet, and in need of food. 

As Je-sus went on his way, two blind men — who sat by 
the road-side and beg-ged for alms, as they were wont to do 
in the East — heard the crowd, and knew what it meant. 
And they went with the throng and cried out, Have mer- 
cy on us, thou Son of Da-vid. Je-sus let them cry thus, 
till they came to the house where he stayed. And as they 
went in, he said to the blind men, Do you be-lieve that I 
can make you well ? They say un-to him, Yes, Lord. 
Then he touched their eyes, and said, Let the cure be as 
great as your faith. And their sight came back to them, 
and Je-sus charged them not to boast of what had been done. 
But when they left, they spread the news in all that part of 
the land. 

This did more harm than good to Je-sus, as it roused 
the hate of his foes, and made them lay plans to put a stop 
to his work, and to make more haste to put him to death. 
Je-sus meant that those who were cured, or saved, should 
be glad in their own hearts, and full of thanks to God. 

There are times when the cause of Christ is hurt by too 
much noise; when it is well for those who love Je-sus 
to lead calm lives, and do his work in their own homes, 
where, though hid from the sight of men, it is not hid from 



1 68 Jesus at Ca-^per-na-um. 

the sight of God. But it is right at all time to give thanks, 
and to pray; and this we can do in our own homes. If we 
have been blind so that we did not see our own faults, we 
can show that we have gained our sight, and are with those 
who walk in the foot-steps of Je-sus. 

One day there was brought to Je-sus a man who was 
both mad and dumb. And Je-sus cured him so that he 
spoke, and was in his right mind. And the Jews who saw 
this were a-mazed, and said, Nev-er were such strange things 
done in this land. And they said that he could cast out 
dev-ils be-cause he was in league with the dev-il. 

And Je-sus went a-bout through all the large and small 
towns, and taught and preached the good news, and healed 
the sick, and all those who came to him for help. 

When Je-sus saw the crowds, his heart was touched, 
for he felt that they were as sheep that had no shep-herd. 
And he spoke to the Twelve, and told them that the world 
was like a great field of grain, which had grown quite ripe. 
It was time to reap it, but there were, as yet, too few to do 
the work. And he gave them power to heal the sick, and 
to do such works as he did, and then sent them out two by 
two to teach and preach as he had taught them. 

As yet they were to preach to no one but the Jews. 
They were to take no purse with them, no scrip — or bag — 
for food, no change of coats, nor shoes, nor staff; for it was 
but right that those for whom they worked should feed and 
clothe them. 

They must find out where good folks lived, and stay 
with them till they left the place. And when they came 
to a house they were to bow — as men were wont to do 




BROUGHT HIM THE DUMB. 



170 



ye-sus at Ca-ftei'-na-um, 



in the East — and say, Peace be to you. And if no one 
came to ask them in or to make them guests of the house, 
they were not to be hurt. The peace would not go to 
those in the house, but would come back to them. And 




VIEW IN PA-MAS-CDS. 



if they went to a house or town, and could find no one to 
take them in, no one who cared to hear their words, they 
were to shake the dust off their feet, to leave the place 
with-out hard words, for God would judge that town at the 
Last Day, and it would go hard with those who lived 
there. 

Je-sus said, Ye must be wise as ser-pents — who watch 



Jesus at Ca-fter-na-um. 171 

and keep out of harm's way and as meek and mild as doves ; 
for I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. He 
told them that men were more to be feared than wolves, 
for they would bring them up to the church courts and 
scourge them; and they would be charged with crimes, and 
be brought be-fore the judge, or the king. 

When they thus bring you up, take no thought how or 
what ye shall speak, for the words will be put in-to your mouth. 
All men would hate them for his sake, but those who held 
out to the end should be saved. 

Je-sus said, If they ill use you in this town, flee to the 
next one. There is some-where a place to preach Christ, 
and to tell of the love of Je-sus. If we can-not do it where 
we are, we may be sure we are not in the right place for us, 
and it is well to move on. These men were not to think 
they could lead a life of ease. Their task was a hard one, 
but Je-sus would be with them all the way. They were 
not to think that men would be more kind to them than 
they were to Je-sus. 

They had called him hard names, and how much worse 
names would they call these whom he sent out. But they 
were to be bold, and fear not, for his truth should be made 
known and he would set things in the right light. If they 
held back the truth it would be found out. They had been 
to school to Je-sus, and now they were to go out and teach. 
He. said to them, what I tell you in the dark, that speak 
ye in the light ; and what ye hear in the ear, that preach 
from the house-tops. They were to speak in a loud voice, 
so that all could hear. They were not to fear for their 
lives, for God who cared for the birds that are so small 
that they are sold in pairs, would be sure to care for them. 



172 ye- si is at Ca-per-na-um. 

He said that each one who would serve Christ with a 
true heart, must give up the world and all the things 
that held him back, and bear his own cross with a firm and 
child-like trust. Each one has a cross to bear in this life. 
My cross may not be the same as yours. One may be poor, 
or sick, or may have to live with those who are not kind, or 
who have no fear of God, and take his name in vain, 
and spend their days in sin. Those who are near and dear 
to us may not think as we do, and this would be a hard 
cross to bear. 

Je-sus said, Think not that I came to send peace on 
earth ; I came not to send peace, but a sword. The sword 
of Christ brings true peace. It puts to death the worst of 
foes. Je-sus and Sa-tan can-not live in the same place. 
The two are at strife, and will be till the end of time. 
Peace on earth, the an-gels sang, and they meant peace 
with God which all may have, if with the sword of the 
Lord they keep sin out of their hearts. I came, said Je- 
sus, to set men at sword's point with those near and dear 
to them. A man's foes shall be those of his own house- 
hold. Je-sus meant that we must not let the ties of earth 
keep us back from him. We are to love Je-sus more 
than we love those of our house-hold ; to give them up if 
need be, but to cling to Christ till the last hour of life. As 
I shall bear my cross, said Je-sus, you must bear yours. 

He said to the Twelve, Those who give their hearts to 
you, give their hearts to me. Those who lose their lives 
for my sake, shall live when this world is no more. And 
those who do a kind act out of love to Christ, if it be but 
to give a drink to a child, shall not miss the crown that 
God will give them. 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE POOL OF BE-THES-DA. JE-SUS IN JE-RU-SA-LEM. 

DEATH OF JOHN THE BAP-TIST. 

As Je-sus had sent off the Twelve, he had now to do 
his work a-lone. It was near the spring of the year when 
he set out for Je-ru-sa-lem, and a feast was held there at 
that time which brought a great throng of Jews to the 
place. 

Now there was in Je-ru-sa-lem, near the well-known 
sheep-pool, a twin pool, which was called Be-thes-da, or 
The House of Grace. It had five arch- ways from which were 
steps that led down to the pool, and here in the shade a 
great crowd of sick folks lay in wait — for what ? Why it 
was said that from time to time an an-gel came and stirred 
up this spring, or pool, and those who first step-ped in-to 
it when it was moved in this way, would be cured of all 
their aches and pains. 

We know how it is in these days. There are springs 
in all parts of the world, to which men go to be cured of 
the ills that flesh is heir to. Some are salt; some have 
lime in them, or i-ron, or some-thing else that is good for 
the health. They start from some place deep down in the 
earth, and find their way up to the day-light, and form a 
spring, or pool. Some of these springs have tides, and 
ebb and flow, like the waves of the sea. But most of them 

173 



The Pool of Be-thes-da. 175 

gush forth, as free as God's love, and seem to say, Come 
ye to the fount that flows for you. Drink of it! Bathe 
in it! It will give you life and health! The pool that is 
calm and still year in and year out, is not a pure fount. It 
needs to be stirred up. The pool at Be-thes-da was one 
of those that gushed forth from time to time, and so it was 
said that an an-gel stirred it, for all good deeds were laid 
to the an-gels. And, of course, the sick ones, who were 
rich, were the first to get there, and to crowd back those 
who were poor, and could not hire men to wait on them. 

And there was one poor man there who had had no 
use of his limbs for nigh un-to two-score years. When 
Je-sus saw him there, and knew that he had been a long 
time in that state, he said un-to him, Wilt thou be made 
whole? Which was the same as if he had asked him, Do 
you wish to be made well ? 

The lame man said, Sir, I have no friend, when the wa- 
ter is stirred up, to put me in-to the pool : but while I am 
on the way, some one else steps down be-fore me. He 
was poor, he could not hire help, and may have felt a hope 
that Je-sus would prove a friend in need. Though he might 
bedip-ped in the spring it would be some time be-fore he was 
made quite well. 

Je-sus felt sorry for the poor man, and said to him, 
Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And at once the man 
rose, and took up his bed, and walked, for that voice had 
thrilled him through and through, and he was both strong 
and glad. 

There was no need for him to bathe in the pool. No 
need for him to wait for a chance, and to lose heart from 




AN AN- GEL STIR-RED THE POOL. 



The Pool of Be-thes-da. 177 

day to day. Je-sus says to him, Do you wish to be well? 
He does, and the cure is made at once. Je-sus does not 
lay hands on him, or touch him. He speaks, the man 
hears, and takes Je-sus at his word. He might have said 
when Je-sus told him to rise, I can-not get up. I am too 
lame to walk a step. If you can-not help me in my way 
you are not a true friend. He wished to be well. He 
did not know Je-sus, but looked on him as a friend, and 
when he said, Rise, the man got up at once, and was strong 
and well. 

What are we to learn from this ? Why, that we need 
not wait for some one to lead us to Christ, or to put us in 
the way of good things. We can-not help our-selves or 
make much head-way, be-cause we lean on our own strength. 
We must give up our own wills. When he asks us if we 
wish to be freed from our sins — when first we hear him 
speak to us — we must say, Yes, Lord, I do. Make me 
clean; and give me strength to walk in thy foot-steps. 
And when he says, Rise, we must not think we can-not 
give up the life we have so long been used to. He will 
give us strength to lift our-selves up from low things if we 
but put our trust in him. 

This lame man felt at once that he had done the right 
thing. The voice of Je-sus was like a draught from a fresh 
pure spring, that sent new life through his veins. To hear 
was to o-bey — to do as he was told — and he went forth 
strong and glad. 

Now this was done on the Day of Rest, and the Jews 
were so strict they would let no work at all be done on 
that day. They built no fires in the house, and cooked no 



178 



The Pool of Be-thes-da. 



food, and when they met a man with a load on his back 
they could scarce be-lieve their eyes. What Jew would 
dare to break the law of Mo-ses in this way? 

So they went up to the man, and asked him if he did 
not know it was wrong to take up his bed on the Day of 




POOL OF SOL-O-MON. 



Rest. The man said to them, He that cured me, said to 
me, Take up thy bed and walk. 

Then they asked, Who is it that cured thee, and told 
thee to take up thy bed and walk ? But the man did not 
know, for he had lost sight of Je-sus in the crowd. In a 
few days, when Je-sus was in the Tem-ple-courts, he saw 



!■ 




180 The Pool of Be-thesda. 

this same man whom he had cured; and he said to him, 
Be-hold, thou hast been made well: Sin no more that 
some worse thing come not un-to thee. And the man 
went and told the Jews that it was Je-sus who had made 
him a well man. 

The Jews were up in arms at once, and for this cause 
did they hate Je-sus; for he had no right, they said, to do 
such things on the Day of Rest. And he was brought be- 
fore the Chief Priests that they might warn him; for if he 
did not cease to break the law he would be scourged, or 
put to death. These priests thought to strike fear in-to the 
heart of this strange man who claimed to be the Son of 
God. And for this were they more fierce to kill him, for 
each word that he spoke made the fires of hate burn fierce 
in their hearts. 

He said that he could do naught but what his Fath-er 
told him to do. God did not rest on the Sab-bath, nor 
did he rest. The sun, moon, and stars kept on their 
course. The earth did not stand still, and the rain fell, the 
grass grew, and the trees gave forth their fruits. The sick 
had need of care on that day; and God did not mean to 
make the Day of Rest a hard, dull day, but to so fill it with 
joy that it would stand out far more bright than the six days 
that make up the rest of the week. 

Af-ter six days of toil, in which the mind is more or less 
filled with the cares of the world, we need at least one day 
of rest. We need it to keep our-selves in health, to let 
off the strain on brain and nerves. But more than all we 
need time to think — to give up the greed of gain — and to 
give our souls a chance to grow. Why, the man who toils 



The Pool of Be-thes-da. 181 

day in and day out, and thinks of naught but how he can 
earn more gold, will pinch and starve his soul till it dries 
up with-in him. For the soul needs to be fed, and each 
Day of Rest ought to find us in the House ot God, and 
glad to be there. We are to think of it as God's Day, 
and to do all we can to make it a bright day in our homes 
and in our hearts. Je-sus said, There were good deeds 
that must be done on that day. He told them that he had 
raised up those who were dead in their sins; and that an 
hour should come when those who were dead and in their 
graves should hear his voice and come forth. Those that 
have done good shall rise to live with God ; and those who 
have spent their lives in sin shall go down where the lost 
ones dwell. God has made me the judge. I can do 
naught of my-self. As I hear,' I judge, and am just to all. 
For I seek not to do my own will, but the will of him that 
sent me. 

If I should claim to stand a-lone, my words would not 
be true. There is One who is with me, and He will prove 
that my claims are not false. In Him I trust. Ye have 
sent to John, and he told what was true of me. But great 
though John was, he was but a man, and could not do the 
works that I do. And these things I say to you that ye 
may be saved. John was like a lamp that burns and 
shines, and for a while ye were glad in that light. 

The lamp was to guide men to Je-sus, to point out the 
right way for them to live. Da-vid says of the Word 
of God, in one of his Psalms, Thy word is a lamp un-to 
my feet, and a light un-to my path, and Je-sus made use 
of this, so that the Jews would know what he meant. 



1 82 Jesus in Je-ru-sa-lem. 

They liked to hear what John had to say, but the words 
that he spoke took no root in their hearts. If they had 
done so these men who heard John would have been on 
the look-out for Je-sus, and would have known him when 
he came. It was not John's fault; he had done good work, 
but the light he bore had failed to reach their hearts. As 
a lamp can be put out, so was John put out, when the sun 
shone, for there was no more need of him. The light of 
which he told, had come in to the world. 

Je-sus said, I do not come from John, but I come from 
God, and the works that I do show that he sent me. But 
though I have talked to you, and done these works in the 
midst of you, ye have not heard the voice of God nor seen 
his form. This is proof that ye have no love for Him in 
your hearts, for ye have turned from him whom He hath 
sent. 

Ye are well read in the Word of God, for ye think that 
he who knows all the Law is fit for the life of the world to 
come. And yet the Word of God speaks of me, and tells 
that I am to come. And yet ye will not come to me that 
ye may have life. I seek not fame from men. But I know 
you, that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come 
to do the will of God, and ye will not be-lieve in me; but 
if one should come in his own name, and to seek his own 
ends, ye would give your whole hearts to his cause. How 
can ye be-lieve, and seek to know the truth, when ye care 
more for the praise of men than for the praise of God ? Do 
not think that I will charge you with these sins in the sight 
of God; there is no need, for it has been done by Mo-ses, 
in whom is your hope and trust. For if ye had faith in 



Jesus in Je-ru-sa-lem. 183 

Mo-ses ye would be-lieve in me. But if ye be-lieve not in 
the words that he wrote, how can ye be-lieve in the words 
that I speak, or the works that I do ? 

The Jews had not a word to say. They had set them- 
selves up to judge Je-sus, and he was their judge. They 
could but gnash their teeth with rage, and lay plans in their 
hearts to get rid of this strange man who claimed to be 
One with God. 

Ju-sus knew that his end was near, that the Jews would 
vent their spite up-on him, and that it would not be safe 
for him to stay in Je-ru-sa-lem. So, sad at heart, he went 
back to Gal-i-lee, and was met with the news of what Her- 
od had done to John. 

This was not the Her-od who was on the throne when 
Je-sus was borne, but his son, a weak man, and not fit to 
rule. 

Now Her-od had a wife of his own but he had put her 
a-way that he might wed the wife of his broth-er, whose 
name was He-ro-di-as. This was a crime and both of 
them knew it, yet who would dare to charge them with 
sin? 

John the Bap-tist. Such crowds went to hear him 
that it was feared some harm would be done, and Her-od 
sent for him to hear what he had to say. He spoke plain 
truths to Her-od, and told him that he had no right to 
live with her whom he called his wife. Her-od was pleased 
with John's words, he liked to hear him talk, but he would 
not give up his wife; and to please her — for she was 
in a rage at what John had said — he had John shut up 
in jail. His wife wished him to be put to death, but the 



184 



yohn The Bap-tist. 



king would not do that, for he liked John, and thought he 
was a good man. 

But what she could not gain in a fair way she set out 
to gain by fraud. Now when Her-od's birth-day came he 
made a feast, and the chief men of the land sat at the board 
with him. His wife had one child — his own niece — a fair 
young girl, named Sa-lo-me. When the feast was at its 
height and the men were filled with wine, the young girl 

came in and danced to the 
sound of the flute and harp, 
and pleased Her-od and those 
that sat at meat with him. 

Those who drink wine, or 
strong drink, are led to do 
strange things, that they would 
not do if in their right minds. 
The drink goes to the brain, 
and is the worst thing that we 
can put in our mouths. We 
can-not trust it. It does not 
serve all in the same w r ay, and 
is the cause of most of the great crimes that are done in 
the world. It turns men in-to beasts. Some are like 
wolves that wish to rend and tear, and sad are the homes 
where these go in and out. Some, like swine, grow dull 
by the day, and spend the best years of their lives in sleep, 
their breath strong with the fumes of rum and beer. They 
can-not think as they ought. They can-not work as they 
ought. Men of fine minds have made wrecks of them-selves 
by their love of strong drink, which has been well called the 




EAST-ERN FLUTE PLAY-ER. 



John The Bap-tist. 185 

curse of the land. It is a curse. What woe has it brought 
to our homes and hearts! Much wine was drunk at these 
feasts in days of old, and as Her-od wished to make a fine 
show at this time, there had been no lack of food or drink. 
The new queen was shrewd. She knew how men were 
when full of wine, and with-out a word to Her-od planned 
out this scheme, and made her own child share with her in 
the great crime. The girl was fair, and full of grace, and 
the king said to her, Ask what thou wilt and I will give it 
to thee. And he swore that he would keep his word 
though she might ask for the half of his realm. The girl 
went out, and said to her moth-er, What shall I ask for? 
And her moth-er told her to ask for the head of John the 
Bap-tist. So the girl came back at once to the king, and 
said to him, My wish is that you have brought to me here, 
on a large dish, the head of John the Bap-tist. 

The king was grieved at this, for he had not thought 
that a young girl would ask for so strange a gift, and he 
had no wish to put John to death. But for the sake ot his 
oath, and be-cause those who sat with him had heard him 
swear that he would give her what she might ask for, he 
would not say, No. Weak man that he was, he had more 
fear of men than of God ! And he sent a man to cut off 
John's head, and it was brought in on a large dish. And 
the girl took it, and gave it to her moth-er. 

When what had been done to John came to the ears of 
his friends, they at once took up his corpse and laid it in a 
tomb, and went and told Je-sus that he was dead. 

At the same time the Twelve, whom Je-sus had sent 
out, came back and told him all that they had done and 



1 86 John The Bap-tist. 

taught. Their work, and the cures they had made, had 
caused more or less talk, and men sought in vain to make 
it clear to their minds who Je-sus could be. 

Some thought he was one of the old proph-ets, or seers, 
come back to earth. But Her-od did not think so. When 
he heard of him, and of the strange things that had been 
done in his name, he feared that John, whose head he had 
struck off, had come back to haunt him. And for this 
cause did he wish to see Je-sus. 



CHAPTER X. 

FIVE THOU-SAND FED. JE-SUS WALKS ON THE SEA. HE 

WARNS JU-DAS. 

Since the Twelve came back, they had had no chance 
to rest night or day. So great were the crowds that flocked 
to see and to hear them, and Je-sus, that they scarce had 
time to eat. And Je-sus felt that they must slip off to some 
place far from the throng, where they could rest and pray, 
and gain fresh strength for the work there was yet to be 
done. So they took a boat and sailed to the north-east 
end of the lake, to a place called Beth-sai-da, or " Fish- 
house.' ' When the crowd found it out, thev set off on 
foot, and ran a great part of the way, and were there to 
meet Je-sus and the Twelve as soon as the prow of their 
boat touched the shore. 

When Je-sus saw this his heart was touched, for he felt 
that they had need of him, and he healed the sick, and 



Five Thousand Fed, 



187 



taught them till the day was iar spent. Then the Twelve 
came to him, and said, Send these a-way that they may go 
outin-to the towns near at hand, and find them-selves food, 




SCALE OF MILES 



MAP OF THE LAKE, OR SEA OF GAL-I-LEE. 



and a place to sleep. Je-sus said, They need not go. 
Give ye them some-thing to eat. They said, Shall we 
go and buy as much bread as it would take to feed them ? 
For there were at least five thousand there. 



1 88 Five Thousand Fed. 

Je-sus said, How much bread have ye? Go and see. 
They brought back word that they had but five loaves and 
two small fish. He told the Twelve to bid the crowd sit 
down on the green grass. And Je-sus took the bread and 
the fish, and blest them, and gave them to the Twelve 
that they might feed the crowd. And when all had their 
fill, there were left twelve bas-kets full of bits of bread and 
fish. 

We are to learn from this that if our store is scant, if 
we have on hand but a small stock of faith our-selves, we 
have but to pray to Je-sus and he will give us all and more 
than we ask for. His flock must be fed; and though it 
may not be clear to us how they can be cared for, the 
Lord will show us the ways and means we are to use. 
The Word of God is a small book, but what a great host 
have been fed from it! and there is still no lack! The 
Twelve had first to bring the bread and the fish to Je-sus, 
that he might bless them in their use. And we must go 
to him with all our needs and our cares, and he will bless 
us and help us, and we will have strength to do a great 
and a good work. 

Such a great thing drew the crowd more and more to 
Je-sus, and the Twelve shared in the awe that was felt. 
Je-sus read their hearts; and feared that they might break 
off the chains that bound them to Rome, and seek to make 
him their king. This would not do, for he would at once 
be put to death by those who sought to kill him. His 
time had not yet come; there was still more work for him 
to do in the world, and he must check those who thought 
to gain wealth if they placed him on a throne. 




CHRIST FEED-ING THE MUL-TI-TUDE. 



190 Five Thousand Fed. 

So Je-sus told the Twelve to take the boat and cross 
the Lake to Ca-per-na-um and he would join them there. 
As dusk came on he coaxed the crowd to leave him, and 
when most of them had gone he went up to the hill-top to 
pray and rest. Not a friend was near him but God. 

Je-sus taught men how to pray. God is near us at all 
times, and knows the thoughts of our hearts. But though 
he is near us, we may not be near him, and it does us 
good to go off by our-selves that we may speak with God, 
and hear the sound of His voice in our hearts. At times 
we are cast down and walk, as it were, through a vale of 
tears. We are on low ground ; we may be sick, or poor, 
or in grief of some sort, and the whole world seems dark 
and drear. 

But what a lift it gives the soul to go up on some hill-top ! 
We seem to shake off the dust of earth. The air is pure 
and clear. And all is calm. We look down on the road 
by which we came, and what seemed great rocks in our 
way we see now are the steps by which we rose to high 
ground. The griefs, and toils, and cares, which we have 
to bear, are not to cast us down, but to lift us up; to make 
us feel our need of Jesus. When we feel weak and sad, 
and the way seems dark, then we must look up, and pray. 
Though you may stand in a low place — though you may 
be sick, or poor — you can still have a mount of prayer. 
When we seek to rise — -when we want to be good and to 
do good — Je-sus is there to help us. A lift from him is 
worth all the help that men can give ; for when the soul is 
on high ground, we can be brave and bold, for the Lord is 
with us. 



Jesus Walks on the Sea. 191 

Da-vid says, I will lift up mine eyes un-to the hills from 
whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord, 
which made heav-en and earth. The Lord will care for 
thee and keep thee. The Lord is thy shade up-on thy right 
hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon 
by night. In this song he shows how great was his trust 
in God, and we, too, should have the same trust, for he is 
our Rock and our Strength. If Je-sus had need to pray, 
how much more do we need to seek him, and to pray to 
him. And how calm and still was the place on the hill-top, 
where our Lord went to talk with God at the close of a hard 
day's work. 

The night grew dark. Now and then the moon broke 
through a rift in the clouds, and Je-sus saw the boat in 
the midst of the sea. The wind beat her out of her course, 
and she could make no head-way, and Je-sus grieved that 
those he loved were so tossed by winds and waves, with 
no one near to calm them. 

How oft we hear it said, "the dark-est hour is just be- 
fore the dawn !" And how true it is! Just when we give 
up hope; when we feel as if we were lost, and there seems 
naught to do but to lie down and die, then help comes. God 
leaves us in this way to test, or try, our faith. If he chose, 
he could keep all those who love him, free from fear, or ills 
of all kinds. But then they might trust in their own strength, 
and not look up to him, or lean on him as they ought. With 
a word Je-sus could have hushed the storm that dashed the 
waves to foam. But the men had first to try to save them- 
selves. If they had had real faith in Je-sus they would have 
called on him. But this they did not do. They thought 



192 ye-sus Walks on the Sea. 

he must be near them or he could not hear them. Their 
boat was in the trough of the sea, and so were they. They 
did not lift up their hearts as they should have done, but 
spent most of the night at their vain tasks. With sad hearts 
they plied the oars, and feared their boat would soon be a 
wreck. But while Je-sus prayed for them they could not 
be lost. It was the fourth watch of the night — near dawn 
of the next day — when the men, worn out with their toils, 
saw a strange shape on the sea. On, on it came, and trod 
the waves with ease, and seemed as if it meant to pass them 
by. They thought it was a ghost, and cried out with fear. 
But the voice they well knew spoke to them and said, It is 
I ; be not a-fraid. 

So when we are in the midst of the storms of life, when 
the sea is rough, and we are borne down with a weight of 
woe, when all is dark, and we lose hope, then Je-sus comes, 
and we hear his voice say, I am near; have no fear. And 
strength comes, and light shines in, and joy fills our souls 
once more. 

When Je-sus spoke to the Twelve, and they knew who 
he was, they beg-ged him to come in-to the ship. But ere 
he could reach there, Pe-ter, who knew not how to wait, 
said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come to thee up-on the 
waves. Je-sus said, Come. Pe-ter at once got down from 
the boat, and set out to walk to Je-sus. With his gaze 
fixed on the Lord all went well ; but as soon as he looked 
at the waves, and felt the force of the winds, he lost faith, 
and began to sink. Then he cried out, Lord save me! And 
Je-sus stretched forth his hand, and caught hold of him, and 
said, O thou of lit-tle faith, why didst thou doubt? 




JE-SUS WALKS ON THE P£A. 



194 ye-sus Walks on the Sea. 

Then both of them climbed in-to the boat, and the wind 
ceased to blow. And all those in the boat — the crew and 
all the rest — bowed down at his feet, and said, Of a truth 
thou art the Son of God. 

We are all right — sale from winds and storms — if Je-sus 
is in the boat with us. For we are all like sea-men. The 
world is our sea. All goes well when the skies are clear, 
and the waves are calm. But when the storms come — 
when the harsh winds blow, and grief and pain are to be 
borne — what then? Shall we trust Je-sus in the day-time 
and not in the night? If Je-sus is with us in the boat, we 
are safe ; we shall be sure to reach the port for which we 
steer. 

The next day, when those whom Jes-sushad fed, found 
that he, as well as the Twelve, had left the place, they took 
boats and came to Ca-per-na-um to seek for them. And 
when they found Je-sus on the west shore of the lake, they 
asked him how he got there, for they knew that he had no 
boat. 

Je-sus did not tell them, for there was no need that they 
should know. He said that they did not seek him be- 
cause of the words that he spoke, but be-cause of the signs 
they had seen, and be-cause they did eat of the loaves and 
were filled. Toil not for the food which does not last, but 
for that which is a feast for all time. The Son of man 
will give this food to you, for this did God send him in-to 
the world. 

They said to him then, What must we do, that we may 
work the works of God? It was as if they said, What 
works must we do to please God ? The works of the law 



Jesus Walks on the Sea, 195 

were such as the law bade them do, and the works of God 
would be the things that God bade them do. Je-sus said 
to them, This is the work of God, that ye be-lieve on him 
whom he hath sent. This was the one thing they were to 
do, to have faith in Je-sus. They were to toil, as the men 
did in the boat, to come to Je-sus, and while they were yet 
on the way he would go out to meet them. 

They had thought more of works and deeds, than they 
did of faith, but the words of Je-sus made things more plain 
to them. It was clear that he meant to turn their thoughts 
from the works they had in view, and fix them on him-self. 
No one else had put forth such a claim, and he must 
prove that by this act of faith men would do God's will. 

So they said to Je-sus, What sign dost thou give us, 
that we may see, and be-lieve thee? What deeds dost 
thou do ? Our fath-ers, they said, Were fed with man-na, 
or bread, which rained down on them out of heav-en. This 
was a hint that the bread Je-sus gave them was made on 
earth, and as though they said, Canst thou do more than 
this, so that thy laws will take the place of the laws of 
Mo-ses? 

Je-sus said to them, I say to you, Mo-ses gave you not 
bread out of heav-en; but my Fath-er gives you the true 
bread out of heav-en. For the bread of God is that which 
comes down out of heav-en and gives life to all the world. 
The man-na which fell from the skies, when Mo-ses led 
the Jews out of the land of E-gypt, was food to last them 
from day to day. It served them in place of bread for 
that time of need. It kept the breath of life in them. So 
did these loaves, with which Je-sus had fed the crowd by 



196 ye-sus Walks on the Sea. 

the sea-shore. The food they took in-to their mouths, was 
not the kind that Je-sus meant, when he said, The bread 
of God comes out of heav-en, and gives life to all the 
world. 

They said to him, Lord, give us this bread that we 
may want no more. 

Je-sus said to them, I am the bread of life; he that 
comes to me shall hun-ger no more; and he that be-lieves 
in me shall thirst no more. 

If we give our hearts to Je-sus, he will come in, and 
dwell with us, and feed us with food that shall give us 
strength and joy. 

He said to the Jews, But I would have you know that 
ye have seen me, and be-lieve not in me. All that which 
God gives me shall come to me ; and him that comes to me 
I will in no wise cast out. 

God's gift to us was His Son, Je-sus Christ. God's 
gift to Je-sus was the souls of those who had faith in him. 
These were to be the stars in his crown : the fish in his net. 
He had spread wide his net of love, and those caught in it 
— -young or old, great or small — would not be thrown out. 
For I have come down from heaven, said Je-sus, not to do 
mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this 
is the will of God, that all those who come to me should 
live with me in the next world, and that I should raise them 
up on the Last Day. 

The Jews did not dwell up-on the hope he held out to 
them of a new life, but found fault with him be-cause he 
said, I am the bread, which was sent down to you as a gift 
from God. And they said, Is not this Je-sus, the son of 



Jesus Walks on the Sea. 197 

the car-pen-ter at Naz-a-reth ? How then can he say that 
he came down from heav-en? How can he claim to be 
more than mere man ? 

Je-sus said to them, Do not find fault with my words. 
No one can come to me till God who hath sent me draw 
him, and I will raise him up at the Last Day. For it was 
said of old, And they shall all be taught of God. He that 
hath heard and learned of God comes un-to me. We must 
first have faith in God and his word be-fore we can have 
faith in Je-sus, and give our hearts to him. 

No one has seen God, save he which is from God, he 
has seen him. And what I say to you is true, he that has 
faith in me shall live for-ev-er. I am the bread of life. 
Your fath-ers did eat the man-na, in the wild lands where 
no food was, and they died. 

This was to bring to their minds the speech that Mo- 
ses made, when the Jews found fault with him. They 
came to him and said, We will send men out to seek for 
the land, and to bring us word by what way we must go 
up, and in-to what towns we shall come. And Mo-ses 
was pleased, and said, I took twelve men of you, one of a 
tribe; and they left us, and went up in-to the mount, and 
came to the vale of Esh-col, and searched through it. And 
they took of the fruit of the land in their hands, and 
brought it down to us, and brought word back, It is a good 
land which the Lord our God doth give us. But ye found 
fault, and held back, and said that for hate, and not for 
love, had the Lord brought you out of the land of E-gypt. 

Mo-ses told them to dread nought, and to fear nought 
that might come in their way, for the Lord their God 



198 ye-sus Walks on the Sea, 

would go be-fore them, and would fight for them. He 
was their fire by night and their cloud by day, to show them 
the way they were to go. But they would not be-lieve in 
Him, or give their hearts to God, and so He said, Not one 
of these men shall see that good land. This is what Je-sus 
meant when he said, They did eat man-na, and died. And 
the Jews that stood round Je-sus knew of this if they had 
read the Books which made up the Word of God. 

Je-sus said, This is the bread which comes down out 
of heav-en, and those who eat of it shall not die. I am 
the bread of life, which came down from God ; he that eats 
this bread shall live for-ev-er. The bread is my flesh 
which I will give for the life of the world. 

The Jews then took hold of his words, and were so loud 
in their talk it was feared there would be a fight. They 
said, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? They 
did not take what he said in the right sense. 

Je-sus said to them, If ye do not eat my flesh and drink 
my blood ye have no life in you. He that eats my flesh 
and drinks my blood, shall not die ; and I will raise him 
up at the Last Day. For my flesh is meat in-deed, and 
my blood is drink in-deed. He that eats my flesh and 
drinks my blood, dwells in me and I in him. Je-sus meant 
by this that he was to be to men what food and drink 
were. All those who come to him and be-lieve in him, 
are said to feed on him. They have no fear of death, for they 
know that when this life ends, Je-sus will bear them to his 
home on high. 

These words seemed strange to most of those who heard 
Je-sus speak them in the church at Ca-per-na-um. They 



ye-sus Walks on the Sea, 199 

did not know just what he meant. Some of them sought 
to find fault with Je-sus, and when we set out to pick flaws 
we are quite sure to find them. They thought more of his 
words, than of what the words meant. 

Bread is oft-times called, "the staff of life/' That 
means, that as we lean on a staff to help us when we are 
weak, so do we feel the need of bread to keep up our 
strength. 

Je-sus is to us the bread of life. We are to feed on 
him in our hearts by faith. If the hearts of the Jews had 
been touched, if they had felt the least shame for their sins, 
they would have paid heed to the words that Je-sus spoke. 

Some of those who had been drawn to Je-sus had their 
doubts, for their faith was not yet strong and free from the 
taint of the world. Je-sus knew this, and ere they left the 
church he spoke to them and said, Does this cause you to 
doubt and fear ? What will ye say then if ye see me go 
back to the place from whence I came, and be no more on 
earth ? 

It is the soul that makes us live, the flesh in it-self is of 
no use. The words that I speak are the life of the soul. 
But there are some of you, he said, who still have no faith 
in me. For this cause have I said un-to you, that no one 
can come to me if God has not drawn him. For faith is 
the gift of God, which all can have who will. If you do 
not have it — if self comes be-tween you and Je-sus — if 
pride keeps you back — if the gold you have shuts out your 
view — if you hate the good and love that which is bad — it 
is your own fault. 



loo He Warns yu-das. 

From this time some of those who had left all to be 
with Christ, went back to their homes, and walked with 
him no more. His words had not brought life to them. 

Sad at heart, Je-sus spoke to the Twelve, and said, 
Will ye, too, leave me? Pe-ter spoke up, and said, Lord, 
to whom shall we go ? Thy words give lite to the soul. 
And we have faith in thee, and know that thou art the Son 
of God. 

Je-sus said, Did I not choose the Twelve, and one of 
you is a dev-il? Now he spoke of Ju-das; for he it was 
who would prove a false friend, and would give him up to 
the Jews to be put to death. None knew this but Je-sus; 
but if Ju-das had had a good heart he would have felt that 
these words were to warn him. For he was one of the 
Twelve. 

Je-sus felt more and more a-lone. He had some friends; 
but he had more foes; and the Jews were so wroth with 
him that they sent out spies to watch him, and to dog 
his steps, and to bring back word of all that he said and 
did. 

No one could be quite so much alone as Je-sus was. 
These men he went with were rough in their speech and 
their ways. It was hard to talk to them, and to make 
things plain to them. Most of them were quite poor, and 
lived, as we say, from hand to mouth. That is, they had 
to work hard each day for the food they had need of. For 
they must eat to live. Je-sus had no home, no near ties. 
It was God's will that he should roam the earth, to seek 
and to save those who are lost. He was to go, as men go 
out for the lambs and the sheep that have strayed from the 



He Warns yu-das. 



20I 



flock. And he- was to bring them back to the fold : that 
is, to the home on high. And he will take the lambs in 
his arms, and they shall be safe with Him. 

Je-sus had not a friend on earth to whom he could tell 
his woes, and who would share in his griefs and joys. He 




RU-INS OF A SYN-A-GOGUE. 



was born as we are, and felt all our needs. He must have 
longed for the love of wife and child, and the sweet joys of 
home. When we have to bear a cross, we have him to 
help us. But he had no one; no one but God. 



202 He Warns yu-das. 

As Je-sus was on his way through Gal-i-lee he passed 
by a large field of corn. It was God's day, but as those 
with Je-sus were faint for want of food, they thought it no 
harm to pick and eat the ears of corn that grew by the 
way-side. But when the Jews, who lay in wait to find 



IN THE CORN-FIELD. 



fault, saw what was done, they cried out that these men 
broke God's law. They held it was a sin to reap or to 
thresh on God's day, and to pluck the corn was to reap 
it, and to rub it in the hands and to blow off the chaff was 
the same as if they had threshed it. So strict were these 



204 



He Warns yu-das. 



Jews that no one must walk on the grass, or pluck fruit 
from the trees on this day that was set a-part as a Day of 
Rest. 

Je-sus said to them, Have ye not read what Da-vid 
did, when he and those with him were in need of food ? 
How he went in-to the house ol God, and did eat the 
shew-bread, which the law said none but the priests should 




W/tf%p&S 



TA-BLE OF SHEW-BREAD. 



eat ? Or have ye not read in the law, how that the priests 
broke the Sab-bath and are not held up to blame ? I say 
un-to you that here is One who is the real tem-ple of God. 
For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sab-bath. Since 
Je-sus came on earth the first day of the week has been 
called the Lord's Day. If we do good works and lead 
souls to Christ we keep the Lord's Day, but if we do things 



He Warns yu-das. 205 

that lead souls from Christ, and if we turn our-selves from 
good works, and fill our minds with thoughts of sin, and 
waste our time, we do not keep the Lord's Day as we 
ought. 

One day when Je-sus went in-to the church, orsyn-a- 




WILD WITH RAGE. 



gogue, to teach as was his wont, there was a man there 
who had no use of his right hand, for it had been hurt so that 
the flesh shrank a-way. It may be that he prayed Christ 
to heal him that he might not be forced to beg. 

The Scribes and the rest of the Jews kept a close 
watch on Je-sus, to see if he would dare to heal the man 



206 He Wai'ns Ju-das. 

on the Day of Rest; for then they would charge him with 
the crime, and bring him be-fore the San-he-drin, the great 
court of the Jews. 

Je-sus knew their thoughts, and did not keep them long 
in doubt. He bade the man whose hand was of no use, 
to stand out were he could be seen by all. Then said 
Je-sus to them, I ask if it is the law to do good or to do 
harm on the Day of Rest? to save life, or to take life? 
And he looked round on them all, that they might speak 
if they chose, for he read their hearts and knew what they 
meant to do. But they held their peace. They did not 
speak. 

Then he said to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. 
And he stretched it out, and his hand was made whole. 

The Jews left the church, wild with rage, and laid 
plans to put Je-sus to death, for it was not safe to have 
such a man teach and preach in their midst. 



CHAPTER XL 



THE LORD S PRAYER. THE LAW-YER. THE RICH FOOL. 

JE-SUS TALKS TO THE CROWD, AND BIDS THEM WATCH. 

Je-sus was wont to pray on the hill-tops, where he could 
be far from men, and where none but God could hear him. 
And one day, when the Twelve were with him, they asked 
Je-sus to teach them how to pray as John was wont to 
teach those who were with him. Je-sus said, When ye 
pray, use these words, Our Fath-er who art in heav-en, hal- 



The Lord's Pray-er. 207 

low-ed be thy name. Thy king-dom come. Thy will 
be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day 
our dai-ly bread. For-give us our debts as we for-give our 
debt-ors. Lead us not in-to temp-ta-tion, but de-liv-er us 
from e-vil, for thine is the king-dom the power and the glo- 
ry, for-ev-er. A-men. 

In plain words they were to ask that God's name might 
be kept ho-ly, and his reign come soon up-on the earth. 
They were to pray that all the world might know God, and 
do His will as did the an-gels round His throne. They 
were to ask for bread, or strength, day by day. They 
were not to pray but once, and think that that would last 
them for the rest of the year, or the rest of their lives. As 
they would need bread from day to day so would they 
need strength from God. For-give us our sins as we for- 
give those who have done wrong to us. Lead us not in-to 
sin — let no one tempt us — but do thou save us — for thou 
art the King ot kings, and thy strength and glo-ry is with-out 
end. The word A-men means, So let it be; or, may all 
this be done for the praise of thy great name. Then Je- 
sus spoke a par-a-ble and said, Which of you shall have a 
friend, and shall go to him at mid-night, and say to him, 
Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has 
come to me from a long way off, and I have nought to 
give him to eat. And the man in the house vexed that he 
has been roused from his sleep, shall say to him, The door 
is now shut, and my chil-dren are in bed with me; I can- 
not rise and give thee the loaves. 

I say to you, Though he will not rise and give him be- 
cause he is his friend, yet be-cause he pleads with him he 



208 



The Lord's Pray-er. 



will rise and give him all that he needs. I say un-to you, 
Ask, and it shall be giv-en you; seek, and ye shall find; 
knock — for he knows what we need, and will keep back 
no good gift. We think we know what we need, but if 
God should give us just the things we asked for, we would 
find out, some time, they were not the best things for us. 
The Jews were still on the watch for Je-sus, and sought 
to trip him up in his words. One day a Jew asked Je-sus 

to dine with him, and 
he went in and sat 
down to meat. When 
the man of the house 
saw it, he thought it 
strange that Je-sus 
did not first wash his 
his hands. For the 
Jews were strict in 
all such things, and 
were apt to think 
more of clean hands 
than they did of clean 
hearts. 

It was rude for this man to speak out so to his guest, 
and Je-sus had cause to chide him. And the time had 
come for him to speak to this sect of Jews, of this one great 
sin of theirs. 

Je-sus said to the man whose guest he was, Now is 
this a proof of the way that ye do. For ye make clean the 
out-side of the cup and the plat-ter; but in-side you are vile 




WASH-ING HANDS. 



The Lord' 's Pray-er. 209 

and full of sin. Ye fools, did not he who made the out-side 
make the in-side as well ? But give for alms those things 
that are with-in — the good gifts of the heart — and all things 
shall be clean un-to you. But all ye do is to be seen of 
men. 

Now the Jews had to pay a tenth part of all they earned, 
or made off the land, as a tax to the church, and for the 
care of the priests. This tax part was called tithes, which 
means a tenth part, and is in use in some parts of the world 
to this day. 

Je-sus said to these Jews, Woe un-to you, for ye pay 
tithes of mint, and rue, and all kinds of herbs, for these 
things cost you not much. But ye are not just to men, 
and show no love for God. And these things ye ought to 
have done, for they were worth more than what you did. 
Ye blind guides! ye strain out the gnat, and eat the cam-el. 

Je-sus meant by this that they gave more thought to 
small things than they did to large ones. They did not see 
the right way them-selves, and so were not fit to act as 
guides. For "if the blind lead the blind, both will fall in-to 
the ditch. " 

Woe un-to you! said Je-sus, for ye cleanse the out-side 
of the cup and of the dish, but leave them foul with-in. He 
said they were blind, for they did wrong to gain wealth. 
And spent all they had on them-selves. Love of self makes 
us blind to all needs but our own. 

Ye are like tombs said Je-sus, which are hid from sight. 
The ground seems fair and smooth, and those who walk 
there know not that with-in they are full of dead men's 
bones — J e-sus meant that these J ews were false friends ; their 
hearts were not true, 



210 The Law-yer. 

There were some at this mid-day meal who were well 
versed in the law; and one of them said to Je-sus, Mas-ter, 
when you speak thus you find fault with us as well as the 
rest. . 

Je-sus said, Woe un-to you, ye men of law! for ye load 
men with more than they can bear, and ye your-selves do 
nought to ease them. 

It was as if he said, Ye have not taught men what they 
ought to know; Ye have not sought the way of truth your- 
selves, and have kept out those who might have walked 
there-in. 

Much more he said, and the Scribes and the rest of 
the Jews pressed up-on him and urged him to talk. For 
they lay in wait as wild beasts lie in wait for their prey, or as 
dogs watch for their game — that they might catch him in 
some of his words ; and bring him up to the chief court 
where the high-priest sat. 

In the mean-time the crowd was so great that Je-sus 
was forced to go out of the house and speak to them. And 
first of all, he spoke to the Twelve, and warned them to pay 
no heed to what these men taught, who seemed to be true, 
and yet were so false. All should be made clear in the 
end, for there is nought that is hid that shall not be known. 
And he said, What ye said in the dark, shall be heard in 
the light ; and that which was told in the ear, shall be cried 
out from the house-tops. God will set all things right. 
Je-sus told them to have no fear of man, or what man 
could do; but to fear God, and to trust in Him. And 
when they bring you be-fore the priests, or those who are 
to judge you, take no thought of what ye shall say. For 



The Rich Fool. 211 

God will put the right thoughts in your mind, and teach you 
the words ye ought to speak. 

One of those in the crowd had heard Je-sus say that 
God would set all things right, and so he said to him, 
Mas-ter, speak to my broth-er so that he share with me the 
half of his wealth. 

Je-sus said un-to him, Man, who made me a judge 
o-ver you, to give each one his share of such things? And 
he said to the crowd, Take heed, and keep your-selves from 
the love of greed ; for a man's wealth in this life is not in 
the goods that he owns. 

And he spake a par-a-ble to them, and said, The 
ground of a rich man brought forth much fruit and grain. 
And he said to him-self, What shall I do, for I have no 
room to stow a-way my fruits. He did not look up-on his 
crops as the gift of God, but claimed them as his own, to 
do with as he liked. 

And he said, This will I do. I will pull down my 
small barns, and build large ones that will hold all my grain, 
and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou 
hast much goods laid up that will last thee for years to 
come; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be mer-ry. 

But God said un-to him, This night thou shalt die; and 

the things thou hast laid up, whose shall they be? So is it 

with him who lays up wealth for him-self, and has no love 

oi God in his heart, and has done no good in the world. 

Je-sus said thev were not to give too much thought to 
ii J 1 

what they were to eat, or where they were to get clothes. 

They were to trust in God, and not fret, and He would take 

care of them. He said, Look at the birds; they do not sow 



212 



ye-sus Talks to the Crowd, 



nor reap, nor have they store-room or barn ; yet God gives 
them all the food they need from day to day. How much 





FISH HAWK. 



YOUNG RA-VENS. 



more are ye worth than these birds of the air? And 
which of you can add to his height? If ye then can-not do 

that which is least, Why take ye 
^ thought for the rest? See the lil-ies 
jft§ how they grow ; they toil not, they 
spin not, and yet I say un-to you 
| that Sol-o-mon in all his glo-ry was 
not robed like one of these. If then 
God doth so clothe the grass of the 
field, which lives but one day, and is 
then thrown in-to f the fire and burnt 
up, how much more will he clothe 
you, O ye ol lit-tle faith? Give not 
all your thoughts to what ye shall eat 
and drink, nor be ye full of doubts and 
fears. Those who are in the world seek the things of the 
world, but your Fath-er knows what things ye need, and 
will take care of you. Trust in God. Seek first his king- 




COR-MO-RANT. 



Jesus Talks to the Crowd. 



213 



dom, and all these things shall be yours. Fear not, lit-tle 
flock; for it is your Fath-er's good will to give you his king- 
dom. Then, as if he knew that in their hearts some in the 
crowd asked, What shall I do? How shall I get this 
king-dom? Je-sus said, Sell what ye have, and give alms. 
Get rid of the wealth that holds you down, and give some 
of it to the poor. Make for your-selves bags which wax 
not old, and lay up for your-selves wealth in heav-en — be 




RA-VEIT. 



rich in love to God — and you need have no fear of thieves 
or of moths. And where your wealth is — where are the 
things you think the most of — there will your heart be. 

The out-side robe worn in the East was so long that it 
had to be held up a-round the waist, or loins, by a belt or 
cord. If not thus girt up, those who wore this dress could 
not walk or run, or serve those who were in need. So Je- 
sus who wished to teach them to be on the watch to do 



214 yes us Talks to the Crowd. 

good works, and not to sit down and wait for a chance to 
come, went on with his talk, and said : 

Let your loins be girt a-bout, and your lamps be lit. 
And be ye like to men that wait for their Mas-ter to come 
back from the wed-ding feast; so that when he comes and 
knocks, they may rise at once and o-pen the door. Blest 
are those ser-vants whom the Lord when he comes shall 
find on the watch ; for I say un-to you that he shall gird 
him-self and make them sit down to meat, and will come 
forth and serve them. Those who are on the watch for 
Christ, who keep the door of their hearts a-jar, are sure to 
have him for a guest. And while they seek to serve him, 
he serves them and fills them with joy and peace such as the 
world can-not give, nor take a-way. 

Je-sus said, If the good-man of the house had known 
at what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, 
and not let him break in-to his house. Be ye on the watch, 
for the Son of Man comes at an hour when ye think not. 
They were to watch and pray and not lose heart. We are 
to be on the look-out for Je-sus, and not lose faith in him 
if he fails to come at the hour we have set. He is sure to 
come. The Son of Man comes as a thief in the night — so 
does death — with soft foot-fall, no one hears, no one knows. 
If we have led good lives, and are of those who wait on the 
Lord, then it is all right; but oh, how sad it is when those 
who have had no room for Christ in their hearts, are cut 
down in the midst of their sins! 

Pe-ter said un-to Je-sus, Is this par-a-ble for us or for 
all? and Je-sus went on with his talk as if he had not heard 
what Pe-ter said : Who then is the faith-ful and wise stew- 



yes us Talks to the Crowd. 215 

ard whom his lord shall set to rule o-ver his house-hold, 
and to give them their share of bread ? A stew-ard is one 
who is left in charge. He sees that the rents are paid in, 
and pays all the bills that are due, and acts in all things as 
the mas-ter would do if he were there. Blest is that ser- 
vant, or stew-ard, whom his lord when he comes shall find 
so true to the trust that has been placed in him. Of a truth 
I say to you, that he will set him to rule o-ver all that he 
hath. 

But if the ser-vant say in his heart, My lord does not 
come at the hour we looked for him, and shall be-gin to 
beat the men and maids, and to eat and drink, and to get 
him-self drunk : the mas-ter of that ser-vant shall come in a 
day when he looked not for him, and in an hour that he 
knows not, and shall judge him as he finds him. 

The ser-vant, w r ho knew the will of his lord, and yet 
did not do right him-self nor teach those in his charge to do 
as they should, shall bare his back to the lash and shall 
have at least two-score stripes for his fault. 

But he that knew not, and yet did things he ought not 
to have done, and for which he ought to be flogged, shall 
have but few stripes. For of him to whom much is giv-en, 
much shall be asked ; and of those who have much placed 
in their care, men will ask more than they do of those 
whom they do not trust. 

I am come to send fire on the earth, said Je-sus. The 
good news was to spread like a blaze through the land. 
But ere this could be done, he must die ; and he spoke of. 
his death in words that were strange to those who heard, 
though he said with a sigh, What a weight is on me till this 



2i6 ye-sus Talks to the Crowd. 

thing be done ? Each step he took was in the shade of 
that dark cross, to which each day he drew more near. 

Do ye think, he said, that I am come to give peace on 
the earth? I tell you, No. But there will be strife in 
each house-hold, and it will be made known who are my 
friends, and who are my foes. 

He turned then and said to the crowd, When ye see a 
cloud rise out of the west, at once ye say, It will rain, and 
so it does. And when the south wind blows ye say, There 
will be great heat ; and it comes to pass. Ye false proph- 
ets ! Ye know how to read the signs on the face of the 
sky and of the earth, but ye know not how to tell the signs 
of this time. Plain as the signs were, they could not see 
them. Yes, and why e-ven of your-selves judge ye not what 
is right ? For as thou art on the way with him whom thou 
hast wronged, thou dost give heed to him, that thou mayst 
be set free; lest he hale thee to the judge, and the judge 
shall give thee to an of-fi-cer, and thou be thrown in-to jail. 
I tell thee, thou shalt by no means come out till thou hast 
paid the last mite — Je-sus was the one they had wronged, 
and if they made their peace with him now, all would be 
well with them. But if they did not he would bring them 
to God, and God would cast them out in-to the dark, 
would turn His face from them, and there they would have 
to stay till they got rid of all their sins. 



CHAPTER XII. 

JE-SUS GOES TO TYRE AND SI-DON. HEALS THE CHILD 

OF THE GREEK WOM-AN. COMES TO GAL-I-LEE. 

GIVES THE BLIND MAN SIGHT. HIS 

CHARGE TO PE-TER. 

Je-sus left the Jews, and went to Tyre and Si-don, 




RU-INS OF TYRE. 



two large towns north of Gal-i-lee, on the west coast of 
this land, which is called The Ho-ly Land, be-cause Je- 
sus lived there. Sad at heart, he thought to hide him-self 

217 




iiiijifiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaii 



ye-sus Goes to Tyre and Si-don, 



219 



ox a while, where he would not be known. But scarce 
lad he reached those parts when a wom-an, a Greek, came 
>ut and cried un-to him, Help me, O Lord, for my child 




SEND HER A-WAY. 



is out of her mind, and it is a grief to see her. But Je-sus 
spoke not one word. 

She had been brought up to bow down to gods of 
wood and stone, to cry out to them for help who had no 
help in them. It may be that they had failed more than 



220 ye-sus Heals the Child of the Greek Wom-an. 

once, and still her faith held out. But love for her child 
brought her toje-sus. She must have heard of him in 
some way, or she would not have gone out to meet him 
Je-sus read her heart, but wished to prove to the Twelve that 
she had faith in him. Je-sus had been sent to the Jews, 
but the Twelve were to go out, and preach to all the world, 
and must plead for this poor wom-an, and not shut her out 
of the fold. 

And the Twelve came and said to him, Tell her to go 
a-way, for she cries af-ter us. They feared she would draw 
a crowd a-round Je-sus, which they knew would not please 
him, since he had come there for rest. 

Je-sus said to her, I was sent but un-to the Jews ; whom 
he called the lost sheep of the house of Is-ra-el, the name 
that God gave to Ja-cob. 

Still the woman cried Lord, help me, and threw her- 
self down at his feet. Je-sus said, It is not right to take 
the chil-dren's bread, and cast it to the dogs. In the East, 
the dogs, those, at least, that were kept in the house, had 
a place on the floor when their masters sat at the feast, 
and were free to pick up what fell from the edge of the ta- 
ble. The wom-an, quick to note what was meant, said at once, 
Yes, Lord, but the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their 
mas-ters ta-ble. She meant that she would be glad of a 
small part of that which the Jews did not care for, and 
would not miss. 

Je-sus said to her, O wom-an, great is thy faith ; be it 
done to thee e-ven as thou wilt. And her child was well 
from that hour. 

Je-sus went on till he came to the east shore of the Sea 



Comes to Gal-i-lee. 



221 



of Gal-i-lee ; and he went up on the hill-side, and sat down 
there. But he could not rest ; for there came to him great 
crowds, and they brought with them the lame, the blind, the 
dumb, those who had lost hand or foot, or were sick in 
some way, and they cast them down at the feet of Je-sus 




HE SAT DOWN TO REST AND PRAY. 



that he might heal them. They had heard of Je-sus, but 
had seen none of the signs that he did, and when they 
heard the dumb speak, and saw the lame walk, the blind 
see, and the maimed — those who had lost some part of 
hand or foot — made well and sound, they gave praise to 
the One, true God. For these folks were Jews, but had 



222 Comes to Gal-i-lee. 

dwelt with those who bowed down to false gods, and were 
half won to think as they did. 

Then Je-sus called the Twelve to him, and said, My 
heart aches for this crowd, for they have been with me 
for three days and have had nought to eat. I will not 
send them home with-out food, af-ter such a long fast, lest 
they should faint on the road. The Twelve said to him, 
Where could we go to get the bread we should need to 
feed so great a crowd? 

Je-sus asked them how much bread they had, and they 
said, Sev-en loaves and a few small fish. Je-sus bade the 
crowd stretch them-selves on the ground ; and he took the 
sev-en loaves and the fish, and gave thanks and brake them. 
Then he gave them to the Twelve, and they gave the food 
to the crowd. And they did all eat till they could eat no 
more, and when the feast was at an end, there was still 
left sev-en bas-kets full of bread and meat. And those that 
were fed at this time, were four thous-and men, wom-en, 
and chil-dren. Then Je-sus sent the crowd a-way, and 
went with the Twelve in-to a boat, and came to a place 
called Mag-da-la on the west shore of the Lake. 

Here the Jews came to him and asked him to show 
them some sign by which they might know that he came 
down from heav-en. Je-sus said to them, When the sun 
sets ye say, No storms are near, for the sky is red. And 
at sun-rise ye say, It will storm to-day, for the sky is red, 
and the clouds hang low. Ye know how to read the face of 
the sky, but are not quick to read the signs of the times. 
Those who were full of sin them-selves, and shut their eyes 
and their hearts to the truth, were fierce to have men prove 



Comes to Gal-i-lee. 



223 



their words. But Je-sus would give them no sign. The 
signs that told of him, were all in the Word of God. And 
with a deep sigh Je-sus turned and left them, and went 
back to the boat, which soon set sail. 




When Je-susand the Twelve 
r & i^m came to the east side of the 

Lake it was found that they had but one loaf of bread 
with them. Je-sus said to the Twelve, Have nought to do 
with the leav-en of the Jews— those who were his foes And 
they said in their hearts, He said that be-cause we brought 
no bread with us. & 

Je-sus, who knew their thoughts, said, O ye of lit-tle 



224 



Comes to Gal-i-lee, 



faith, why be vexed be-cause ye have brought no bread? 
Ye have eyes that see not, and ears that hear not, and how 
hard your hearts are. Did I not feed great crowds with a 
few loaves of bread ? and how is it that ye fail to see that I 
spoke not to you of bread to eat, but that ye should not 




LAKE, OR SEA OP GAL-I-LEE. 



touch the leav-en of the Jews, Then they knew that Je-sus 
meant that they should pay no heed to what the Jews 
taught, who had set them-selves up as his foes. 

As they came to shore at Beth-sai-da, where no doubt 
they stop-ped to buy bread, a blind man was brought to 



Gives the Blind Man Sight. 225 

Je-sus, that he might be healed. Je-sus took hold of the 
blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town. And 
when he had spit on his eyes, he laid his hands on him, and 
asked him what he saw. The man looked up, and said, I see 
men, and they are like trees that walk from place to place. 
Then Je-sus put his hands once more up-on his eyes, and 



KU-INS AT C^ES-A-RE-A PHIL-IP-PI. 



made him look up, and his sight came back, and all things 
were plain and clear to him. And Je-sus sent him to his 
own home, and told him not to go in-to the town. 

Now when Je-sus came near the town of Caes-a-re-a 
Phil-ip-pi which was at the foot of Mount Her-mon, he 
asked the Twelve, Who do men say that I am? They 



226 



His Charge io Pe-ter, 



said, Some say thou art John, some E-li-jah, and some 
Jer-e-mi-ah, or one of the proph-ets. He said un-to them, 
Who say ye that I am? Pe-ter spoke up for the rest as 
well as for him-self, and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son 
of God. 




MOUNT HER-MON. 



Je-sus said to him, Bles-ed art thou, Si-mon son of 
Jo-nah, for flesh and blood hath not made it known to thee, 
but my Fath-er who is in heav-en. And I say un-to thee, 
Thou art Pe-ter, and on this rock I will build my church, 
and the gates of hell shall have no hold up-on it. And I 
will give to thee the keys of my king-dom, and all that thou 



His Charge tu Pe-ter. 227 

shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heav-en, and all that 
thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heav-en. Then 
charged he the Twelve that they should tell no man that 
he was Je-sus, the Christ — the One who had come to save 
the world. 

The word Pe-ter means a stone, or rock, and Je-sus, 
made use of this as his text when he spoke to Pe-ter at this 
time. He meant that all whom he sent were like stones 
on which his church — Christ's Church — were to be built. 
'The gates of hell" was a phrase much used in the East, 
when men spoke of death. Christ was to give lite; and 
those who kept near him, need have no fear of death. He 
gave to Pe-ter, not the keys of a church on earth, but the 
keys of the king-dom of God ; and told him that what he 
did for the cause of Christ on earth, God would not find 
fault with. 

From that time Je-sus be-gan to make known to the 
Twelve that he must go to Je-ru-sa-lem, and be ill-used by 
the chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third 
day be raised up. Pe-ter laid hold of him, and said, Be it 
far from thee, Lord; this shall not be done un-to thee. 

But he turned round and said to Pe-ter, Get thee be- 
hind me, Sa-tan; thou art a stone in my path, for thou 
dost mind not the things that are of God, but those that 
are of men. Pe-ter had need to say, the will of God, not 
mine, be done. 

Then said Je-sus to the crowd near at hand, He who 
will come af-ter me, let him give up all thoughts of self, take 
up his cross, and walk in the same path I tread. For he 
who would save his life shall lose it, and he who would 



228 His Charge to Pe-ter. 

lose his life for my sake shall find it. He who thinks too 
much of this life shall lose the next life ; and he who shrinks 
not from death, if he can serve Christ, will have a life of 
joy be-yond the grave. 

Je-sus said, For what good will it do a man if he gain 
the whole world, and lose his own soul ? or what price will 
he have to give to buy back the life he has lost? For the 
Son of Man shall come in the glo-ry of God the Fath-er, 
and with his an-gles, and shall judge each man by the 
works that he has done. And I say un-to you, It is true 
that some of those that stand here shall in no wise taste of 
death till they see the Son of Man come in-to his king-dom. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

JE-SUS IS TRANS-FIG-URED. THE LIT-TLE CHILD IN THEIR 

MIDST. HOW TO FOR-GIVE DEBTS. 

From time to time Je-sus had in his talks thrown out 
a hint that the time of his death was not far off. He and 
the Twelve were now on the east side of the sea of Gal- 
i-lee, near mount' Her-mon. At the end of six days Je-sus 
went up-on the mount to pray and took Pe-ter, and James, 
and John with him. Night came on, and in the hush of 
that hour, as Je-sus spoke with God, those who were with 
him saw a great change take place. His face shone like 
the sun, and his clothes w T ere so white that the eye could 
not gaze up-on them. And Mo-ses and E-li-jah came and 
talked with him. 




THE TRANS-FIG-U-RA-TION. 



2JO 



ye-sus is Trans-Jig-ured. 



Pe-tersaid to Je-sus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: 
if it is thy will, let us make here three tab-er-na-cles, or 
tents; one for thee, one for Mo-ses, and one for E-li-jah. 
While he yet spoke a bright cloud hid the three from 




REST AND SHADE. 



sight, and there came a voice out of the cloud which said, 
This is my be-loved Son, in whom I am well pleased; 
hear ye him. They were to hear what he said, to take his 
words to heart, and to do as he told them. 

When Pe-ter, James, and John, heard the voice, they 



232 ye-sus is Trans-fig-ured. 

fell down with their face to the ground. And Je-sus came 
and touched them, and said, Rise, be not a-fraid. And 
when they looked up they saw no one but Je-sus. 

Some think that this scene took place on Mount Ta- 
bor, but as our Lord was now on his way to the north, 
Her-mon was the mount most near at hand. It was more 
than a hill, for its top reached up to a great height, and 
was at this time of the year tipped with snow. All down 
its sides were tall trees, with leaves so white that they shone 
like sil-ver in the sun ; and when Je-sus was changed, when 
light shone all a-round, it is not strange that Pe-ter and 
John hid their eyes, and were dazed by what they saw and 
heard. 

As they came down from the high mount, Je-sus bade 
them tell no one what they had seen, till the Son of Man 
had been raised from the dead. One of them said to Je- 
sus, Why then do the Scribes say that E-li-jah must first 
come? Je-sus said to them, E-li-jah shall first come, and 
make straight the paths of the Lord. But I say un-to you 
that E-li-jah has come, and they knew him not, but have 
done un-to him that which they chose. In the same way 
will they treat the Son of Man. Then they knew that he 
spake to them of John the Bap-tist. 

The next day, when it was known that they had come 
down from the mount, a great crowd were there to meet 
Je-sus; and when they saw him they were struck with awe, 
and bowed down at his feet. And one of them said, Mas- 
ter, I brought un-to thee my son, who has a dumb dev-il. 
And he takes him, and tears him, so that he froths at the 
mouth, and grinds his teeth, and grows thin by the day. 



Jesus is Trans-fig-ured, 233 

The boy was dumb, and from time to time had fits which 
made him act in this way. 

And the man said, I asked thy dis-ci-ples to cast 
out this de-mon, and they could not do it. Je-sus said, 
Bring him to me; and as soon as the boy came near Je-sus 
he fell down on the ground, and rolled back and forth, and 
frothed at the mouth. 

Je-sus said to the fath-er, How long is it since this 
came up-on him ? The man said, From the time he was 
a child. And oft-times it has thrown him in-to the fire 
and in-to the wa-ter, to burn him or drown him; but if thou 
canst do aught, help us, I pray thee. Je-sus said, The 
case rests with thee. If thou canst have faith, all things 
can be done. 

Straight-way the fath-er of the boy cried out, Lord I 
be-lieve ; help me to have more faith in thee. Then Je-sus 
said to the deaf and dumb de-mon, Come out of him, and 
go in-to him no more. With a cry the boy fell down to 
the ground, and lay as if there was no life in him. Some 
of the crowd thought he was dead. But Je-sus took him 
by the hand, and raised him, and he stood up and was 
cured. 

When Je-sus was come in-to the house, some of the 
nine, who were not with him on the mount, said to him, 
Why could not we cast out the de-mon? Je-sus said to 
them, Be-cause your faith is weak. For I say un-to you, 
If ye have faith as a grain of mus-tard seed, ye shall say to 
this mount, Move from this place to that place, and it shall 
move. Je-sus did not mean that the mount would, in truth, 
change its place, but that those whose faith was great might 
see as great things done. 



234 The -Lit-Me Child in Their Midst. 

They went from this place, and passed through Gal-i-lee 
by lanes and by-ways ; and he taught the Twelve, and said 
to them, The Son of Man shall be giv-en in-to the hands of 
men, and they shall kill him, and he shall rise from the 
grave on the third day. And those who heard him say 
this were sad and grieved, but dared not ask him what he 
meant. 

And they came at last to Ca-per-na-um, and when they 
were in the house, Je-sus said to the Twelve, What was 
it that ye talked of while on the way here ? And their 
shame was so great that they could not speak ; for on the 
way they had quite a strife as to what rank they should 
hold in the king-dom that Je-sus was to set up. They 
knew what it meant to be on good terms with the Prince 
— the heir to the throne — for when he was made King he 
would do well by them. This was the way of the world, 
and all their thoughts were of self. 

Je-sus sat down and called the Twelve to him, and 
said: If a man plans to be first of all he shall be last of 
all, and the slave of all. And he called a child to him, and 
took him in his arms, and said, If ye do not turn from your 
sins, and be as chil-dren, ye shall in nowise have part in 
the king-dom of God. He who ghall be^as meek as this 
child, shall be great in the king-dom of God. And he who 
puts down pride, and tries to teach a child and to do him 
good, in my name, I will be with both of them. He who 
takes me in-to his heart, takes not me a-lone but Him who 
sent me. 

John said, Mas-ter we saw one cast out de-mons in thy 
name, and he was not one of us, and for this cause we 



The Tit-lie Child in Their Midst. 235 

told him to do so no more. But Je-sus said, For-bid him 
not ; for no man who will do great works in my name, can 
speak ill of me. For he that is not a-gainst us is with us. 
He who shall give you a drink in my name, or be-cause ye 
are Christ's, shall in no wise lose his re-ward. God takes 
note of these good deeds, but they must be done in the 
right way, to please God, and with no thought of gain. 

Je-sus said, He who shall cause a child to do wrong, or 
shall harm the weak ones who have faith in me, to turn them 
from me, it were as well for him that a great mill-stone were 
hung a-bout is neck, and that he were sunk in the depths 
of the sea. Je-sus meant by this that there was no hope 
that such a man would rise at the Last Day. Woe un-to 
the world be-cause of the sins of the world! — but woe to 
him who lays traps in the way of those who would seek 
Christ, so that their feet slip and they fall back in the 
ways of sin ! The guilt is on those who lead men to do 
wrong. And he went on to warn them that it was bet-ter 
to put all things out of the way that led them in-to sin, or 
caused some one else to sin. 

Men sin with their hands. They steal; they forge 
names to checks ; they turn keys they have no right to touch ; 
they strike, and fight, and raise the glass to their lips that 
lights with-in them the fires of hell. Je-sus said it were 
bet-ter to have both hands cut off, than that they should 
lead us in-to sin, and shut us out of heav-en. 

Men sin with their feet. They go where they should 
not go. They make paths for them-selves, and say that 
they are right, and lead those to join them who look to 
them to be taught. They go not to church, or where good 



236 The Lit-tle Child in Their Midst. 

folks meet, but are found in the ways of sin. They walk 
not in the ways of the Lord. Je-sus said it would be bet- 
ter to have both feet cut off, and go through life thus maimed, 
than to lose our way to God's home, where all is light and 
love, and to be cast out of his sight at the Last Day. It 




SOR-ROW FOR SIN. 



is not thought that the lake of fire, means a real lake, or pit, 
in-to which the bad are thrown at the Last Day. 

Each child knows how he feels when he has done 
wrong. He burns with shame. His fath-er knows it, and 



The Lit-tle Child in Their Midst, 23) 

is not pleased. But he says not a word; for it is his wish 
to have the boy or girl come to him and ask him to for- 
give the sin. If the child does, it is all right, and all is joy 
and peace. But if he does not ; and goes on and does 
worse things, can you blame the fath-er if he feels sad, and 
can-not own the boy, or girl, as his child? 

Then, some day, there will come a great grief in the 
child's heart, though he may be a child no more, and 
shame, and woe, will burn, and burn, and burn, and tears 
that might once have put out the fire, fail to put it out now. 

Je-sus went on to say, See that ye look not down up-on 
these who are young in years, or weak in faith, for I say 
un-to you that their an-gels in heav-en stand near the throne 
of God. For the Son of Man is come to save that which 
is lost. How think ye ? If a man have a hun-dred sheep, 
and one of them is lost, does he not leave the nine-ty and 
nine, and go off on the hills to find that one which is lost ? 
And if so be that he find it, he will feel more joy o-ver 
that one sheep, than o-ver all the rest which have not gone 
a-stray. So it is not God's will that one of these lit-tle 
ones be lost. Je-sus will take them in his arms, and save 
them. 

Then Je-sus told them how they were to deal with 
those who did wrong in the church. If one has done wrong 
go and tell him of his fault, and let no one else know of it. 
If he hear thee, thou hast gained his love, and brought 
him to see his sins, and to make his peace with God. 

If he hear thee not, then take with thee two or three 
more that they may plead with him. If he will not hear 
them, tell it to the church; and if he will not hear the 



2 3 8 



The Lit-tle Child in Their Midst. 



church, or those who make up the church, let him be to 
thee as one who loves not Christ, and has no right to bear 
his name. And he said to them what he had said to Pe- 
ter, What things ye shall bind 
on earth shall be bound in heav- 
en; and what things ye shall 
loose on earth shall be loosed 
in heav-en. These men were 
to build up the Church of 
Christ on earth, and in all that 
,..'/aH ,-" /<' ; ~ they did they would have God's 
help. They might take in Jews, 
or Greeks, and it would be all 
right, and those they put out of 
the church on earth, God would 
have no place for in his home 
on high. 

Then he said to them, If two 
of you shall be of the same mind, 
and ask for the same thing, God 
will hear you when you pray, 
and grant you what you ask. 
For where two or three meet 
to pray or praise, there am I in 
the midst of them. 

Then came Pe-ter, and 
said to him, Lord how oft shall 
a man do wrong to me, and I 
for-give him? sev-en times? Je-sus saith un-to him, I say to 
thee, not sev-en times, but sev-en-ty times sev-en. 




THE SHEEP THAT WAS LOST. 



How to For -give Debts. 239 

Love does not stop to count. If some onewhoisdear to us 
does wrong, we for-give and for-give for our hearts will not 
let us turn from them and cast them off. We hope from 
day to day that they will cease to do wrong, and learn to 
do well. If such is man's love, how strong is God's love, 
and how long it will hold out! Up to the last hour of our 
lives He waits for us to come to Him with love in our hearts. 
Just think of it! The sins of a whole life-time we may 
blot out, if we will come to God, and ask Him to for-give us, 
not for our own sakes, but for the sake of his dear Son, 
Je-sus Christ. We know not when we are to die. We 
may not live to be old. Let us then make our peace with 
God now, that we may walk with Him all the rest of our 
days, and be His child. 

Je-sus said to the Twelve, and to those who drew near 
him, The king-dom of God is like to a King who called up 
his stew-ards, or ser-vants, that they might pay him what 
they owed him. The King gave a sum in-to the hands 
of these men which they were to put to the best use, and 
to add to from day to day. Not a cent of it was their own, 
but they were to buy and sell with it, so that there would 
be great gain for the King whose work they were to do. 

And one man was brought to the King who owed him 
a vast sum. He had not done well with the wealth 
that had been placed in his hands, and was now deep in 
debt. And as he could not pay this large sum, his lord 
and mas-ter gave com-mand that he and his wife, and chil- 
dren, and all that he had, should be sold, that what they 
brought might at least pay part of the debt. 

The poor man then fell down at the feet of the King, 



240 How to For-give Debts. 

and said to him, Lord, do not be hard up-on me, I pray 
thee, and I will pay thee all. And the lord of that ser-vant 
felt sor-ry for him, and let him go, and did not ask him to 
pay back what he owed him. He for-gave the debt. 

He took it up-on him-self, in the same way that Je-sus, 
our Lord, takes up-on him-self our sins — our debts — and 
wipes them all out. We can-not pay them. He pays 
them all. All he asks is that we pray to him, and love 
him. This ought not to be a hard task. Think of all we 
owe to him. If we had a friend on earth who paid all our 
debts, and did for us what Je-sus has done, how we would 
love him, and how glad we would be to please him. Our 
hearts would go out to him with thanks and joy, and we 
would think of him day and night. 

But that same ser-vant went out and found a man who 
owed him a small sum — not more than fif-teen dol-lars ; and 
he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, and said, 
Pay what thou dost owe me. The man fell down at his 
feet, and begged him to be less harsh, and said, Bear with 
me for a while, and I will pay thee. But these words did 
not move him, and he cast the poor man in jail, to stay 
there till he had paid that which was due. 

When the rest of the ser-vants saw what was done, they 
felt sad and sor-ry, and they came and told their lord, the 
King. Then his lord called the ser-vant un-to him, and 
said, Thou wick-ed ser-vant, I for-gave thee all that debt, 
be-cause thou didst ask me. Shouldst not thou for-give 
him who owed thee, e-ven as I for-gave thee ? And the King 
was wroth, and gave him up to be vexed by the courts of 
law till he had paid all that was due. So shall God do to 



How to For-give Debts. 241 

you, if ye from your hearts for-give not those who have sin- 
ned a-gainst you. 

We owe to God more than we can pay. He is kind 
to us, and prompt to for-give when we turn from our sins 




SHOULDST THOU NuT FOK-GIVE AS I FOR-GAVE THEE? 

and ask Him to give us new and clean hearts. We should 
then be kind to those who are in debt to us, and not turn 
from them with harsh words and looks. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE TEM-PLE TAX. THE GREAT FEAST OF THE JEWS. 

JE-SUS GOES NOT UP WITH HIS KINS-FOLK. "i AM 

THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD." THE 

MAN BORN BLIND. 

While Je-sus and the Twelve were at Ca-per-na-um 
the men came to whom the tax was paid to keep the Tem- 
ple at Je-ru-sa-lem in good or-der. Each male Jew who 



242 The Te7n-fle Tax. 

was more than twen-ty years of age had to pay the small 
coin, which was worth less than fif-ty cents. 

The men came to Pe-ter, and said, Doth not your mas- 
ter pay the tax? Pe-ter said, yes, and would have paid it. 
But when he came in-to the house, Je-sus stop-ped him, 
and said, From whom dost thou think the kings of the 
earth take toll ? from their sons, or from those not of their 
house-hold ? 

Pe-ter said, From those not of their house-hold. Je- 
sus said, Then the sons are free. But lest we should cause 
them to do wrong, go thou to the sea, throw out thy hook 
and line, and take the first fish that comes up. Look in 
its mouth, and there thou shalt find a piece of mon-ey; take 
that, and give it to them for me and thee. 

Pe-ter did as he was told, and went out and caught the 
fish, and in its mouth was the small coin which was to pay 
the tax called for. Pe-ter had shown that he felt it to be 
a just debt, and lest he should give the priests cause to find 
fault with him, Je-sus told Pe-ter how he could pay the 
small tax. Pe-ter must go back to his old trade to earn 
the sum he had need of, and the first fish he caught paid 
him for his work. So it is with us. God sets us to do 
some task — to toil for him, with-out a thought of pride — 
and if our hearts are right, if we love Je-sus, we will get 
our pay right straight a-long. 

Je-sus had not been in Ju-de-a for some time, for he 
knew that the Jews there sought to kill him. But now 
the great feast was at hand, the third and last one of the 
year, when the Jews from all parts of the land went up to 
Je-ru-sa-lem, to give thanks to God for the good crops that 
were stored in their barns. 



The Great Feast of the jTews a 243 

It is a good thing to give thanks to God, to praise His 
name for all that He has done for us! 

It was a gay and glad time; friends met, and sat side 
by side in the House of God, and songs and hymns of 
praise filled all the place. 

The kins-folk of Je-sus, those with whom he had been 
brought up, said to him, Go up to Je-ru-sa-lem, and make 
thy-self known. Be bold, and if thou canst do strange 
things let all men see thee. For his own folks did not 
have faith in him, or think that he was the Son of God. 
They thought that if his claim was a just one, if he was in 
truth the Son of God, he would not hide him-self as he did. 

Je-sus said to them, My time has not yet come. The 
world can-not hate you — for they were of the world — but it 
hates me be-cause I prove that it is full of sin. Go ye up 
to the feast. I will not go up yet as my time has not come. 
And he staid on in Gal-i-lee. 

His kins-folk went up to be there at the first part of the 
feast, and in two or three days Je-sus went up, but kept by 
him-self that he might not be known. The Jews there 
sought him and said, Where is he? And there was much 
talk a-bout him. Some said, He is a good man; but oth- 
ers said, No, he is not; for he leads men the wrong way. 
But no one dared to speak out loud for fear of the chief 
men of the Jews. 

In the midst of the feast Je-sus went up to Je-ru-sa-lem 
and the Tem-ple-courts and taught there. And the Jews 
that heard him were awe-struck, and said, How is it that 
this man knows so much when he has not been to the 
schools? 



244 ye-sus Goes not up With His Kins-folk. 

Je-sus said, The truths I speak are not mine, but His 
that sent me. He who has the will to do God's will, shall 
hear in my voice, the voice of God. 

The man who speaks from him-self seeks his own praise ; 
but my words and works prove that I seek not to praise 
my-self, but Him that sent me. Did not Mo-ses give you 
the law, and yet not one of you keeps the law. Why seek 
ye to kill me? He had come to do God's will, and to 
make these laws plain to the Jews. They had no right to 
put him to death, and they knew it. Je-sus threw alight 
on their guilt they could not fail to see. But they would 
not look at their own sins. They turned their eyes a-way. 
And when he said, Why seek ye to kill me? they cried 
out, Thou hast a dev-il, and it is he that seeks to kill thee. 

Je-sus said, I did one work, which has caused all this 
stir. Ye have rites which ye do in the church on the Day 
of Rest, and why should ye be in a rage with me be-cause I 
healed a man on that day ? To break the law of Mo-ses 
was to them far worse than to break God's law of love. To 
bid a man rise, take up his bed and walk, on the Day of 
Rest, was a great sin. Je-sus said, Judge my work as you 
judge your own, and you will find no fault in it. 

Some of those who heard him said, Is not this whom 
they seek to kill ? And lo, he speaks in this bold way, and 
they say nought to him. Can it be that they know that 
this is the Christ? We know where this man came from; 
but where the Christ comes from no one can tell. 

Je-sus, who knew how men thought of him, cried out 
with a loud voice so that all could hear him, Ye both know 
me, and ye know the place from whence I came. I have 



"I am the Light of the World" 245 

not come of my-self, but He that sent me is the true God, 
whom ye do not know. I know Him, for I am from Him, 
and He sent me. 

Then they sought to take him, but did not lay hands on 
him, for it was not yet God's time. And some of those 
whom he taught had faith in him, and said, When Christ 
comes, will he do more signs than these which this man 
hath done ? 

The chief priests and the scribes heard what the crowd 
said, though they spoke in low tones; and they feared that 
more of the Jews might be led to think well of Je-sus, and 
to take his words to heart. So they sent armed men to 
seize Je-sus and to put a stop to his work at once, lest more 
harm should be done. 

Je-sus said, But a short time shall I be with you, and 
then I go to Him that sent me. Ye shall seek me, and 
shall not find me: and where I am, there ye can-not come. 
The Scribes said, Where will this man go that we can-not 
find him? Can it be that he has cast off the Jews, and 
means to go out to the Greeks and teach them ? What else 
can he mean, when he says, Ye shall seek me, and shall not 
find me; and where I am, there ye can-not come? This 
they said with hate and scorn, for they took pains to twist 
the words of Je-sus, and not to look at them or him in the 
true light. 

When Je-sus said, I am the light of the world, they 
thought the world meant the Greeks, those who bowed 
down to false gods. They did not think that the Jews 
were in need of light; and as Je-sus up-set all the old ways 
and old forms they had kept up for so long a time, he was 
more fit to preach to the Greeks than to them. 



246 "/ am the Light of the World. 

On the last, and the great day of the feast, Je-sus stood 
up and cried out, If a man thirst, let him come to me and 
drink. The heart that be-lieves in me shall have in it-self 
the fount of life. And some said, Of a truth this is the 
Christ. Some of the crowd said, What! doth Christ come 
out of Gal-i-lee? Are we not told in the Word of God 
that Christ is to come from Beth-le-hem, where Da-vid 
used to live? 

So there was much strife in the crowd, for they took 
sides as friends or foes of Je-sus. And some of them 
would have seized him, but no man laid hands on him. His 
hour had not yet come. 

Je-sus spoke a great deal of thirst. Those who dwelt 
in the East knew what it meant, for they had had to march 
through great plains of sand, where not a well could be 
found. And oh, what joy it was when they came to a 
rock from whence the cool clear stream gushed forth! No 
draught so sweet to the lip! No sight so fair to the eye! 
No sound so sweet to the ear! 

In times of drouth, when the wells, and springs, and 
streams are dry, men grow faint, and are like to die of 
thirst. This one dreams of the deep pure well from which 
he used to drink. That one, with his brain on fire, raves 
of the clear cool stream which ran near his boy-hood's 
home. All cry out for some-thing to cool their parched 
lips, and to quench their thirst. They drag them-selves on 
to the palm tree's shade, in hopes that there they shall find 
what they seek. They dig in the sand with their own 
hands, and their tongue cleaves to the roof of their mouth. 

Through-out the Word of God Je-sus is called, A rock 



"I am the Light of the World." 247 

in a dry land; a spring; a well of wa-ter; a Fount from 
which all may drink. The worst want that men can know 
is that of thirst, and Je-sus sought to teach these Jews, and 
all the tribes of the earth, their need of Him. 

Mo-ses smote the rock and the wa-ter gushed forth. 
Je-sus smites the hard hearts of men, and love flows out for 
him and for all man-kind. We are to thirst for Je-sus; to 
feel that the world is a dry place, that our lives are hard and 
dry with-out him. The more we drink at this fount — the 
more we learn of Christ — the more strength have we for 
the march, and to do the things God means us to do. We 
must drink from the fount that flows so free, and then pass 
on the cup. Tell all we meet how good it is. 

The men who had been sent to seize Je-sus were awed 
by his words, and they went back with-out him. And the 
chief priests, and the strict Jews, said, Why have ye not 
brought him? The men said, He is more than a man, for 
no one ev-er spake as he does. 

The chief men of the Jews said to them, Have ye too 
been led a-way by this man? Do those who know the 
Law — the wise men of the Jews — do these yield to the 
claims of Je-sus ? No, it is the crowds that run after him, 
those who know not the Law nor the curse that they will 
bring up-on them-selves. 

Nic-o-de-mus — he that come to Je-sus by night — was one 
of this great court of law; and he said to the rest, Does our 
law judge a man be-fore it hears him, or knows what he has 
done ? Ought we not first to try him ? 

They said to him, Art thou, too, led a-way by this man 
from Gal-i-lee? Search all the books and see that that 



548 



"/ am the Light of the World." 



land can-not be the birth-place of Him who is to come, and 
be King of the Jews. 

At the close of the day Je-sus went up to the Mount of 
Ol-ives, and there on the cool green slope he lay down to 




rest, and to be near to God. 

The next day, at dawn, he 

went back to the Tem-ple, and the crowd drew round him, 

and he sat down and taught them there. As men lay snares 

for a bird, or some game they wish to catch, so did the 



"I am the Light of the World." 249 

base Jews lay snares to catch Je-sus, and to have some 
cause to find fault with him. 

But he was calm in the midst of it all, he did not fear 
death, and from time to time put to shame the fore-most of 
his foes. 

It was now the eighth day of the feast; and the great 
light, which was the pride of all the Jews, and which had 
cast so bright a glow up-on the scene, was put out. The 
feast was at an end, and tbe main part of the Temple was 
closed. But the out-side courts were not closed, and here 
it was that Je-sus taught. 

He took his text from things near at hand. The great 
lamp they had lit them-selves was out, and they missed it. 
Je-sus said, I am the light of the world, and he that comes 
to me shall not walk in the dark, but shall have the light of 
life. Da-vid said in one of his Psalms, The Lord is my 
light; and spoke of Him as a Light that shines in the 
night. 

The foes of Je-sus said, Thou dost speak these words 
of thy-self, and they are not true. Je-sus said, Though I 
speak of my-self my words are true ; for I know whence I 
came and to what place I go, but this ye do not know, ye 
judge as men judge. I judge no one. But if I should 
judge, God is with me. It is laid down in your own law 
that the words of two men are true. In the courts of law 
a man would be set free if he could get some one else to 
speak a good word for him. 

Je-sus said, I am here to prove who I am, and the 
Fath-er that sent me speaks for me. They said un-to him, 
Where is thy Fath-er? Je-sus said, Ye know not me nor 



250 "/ a,7n the Light of the World" 

my Fath-er. If ye knew me, ye would know my Fath-er. 
They would know in their hearts that he had been sent 
from God, or he could not do the things he had done. 
His foes were awed by his words, and though they longed 
to seize him, no one laid hands on him, for his hour was 
not yet come. 

Then Je-sus spoke to them and said, I go my way, and 
ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins. For where I 
go, ye can-not come. 

Then said the Jews, Will he kill him-self? Is that 
what he means when he says, Where I go ye can-not come ? 
Je-sus said to them, Ye are of this world. I am not of 
this world. Je-sus meant that they chose the things of this 
world, and by their own acts shut them-selves out of the 
light and joy that might have been theirs. 

For this cause I said to you that ye shall die in your 
sins. For if ye will not see that I am the one sent to save 
you ye shall die in your sins. 

They said un-to him, Who art thou? Je-sus said, The 
same that I said from the first. I could say more, but ye 
will not hear me. Ye turn a deaf ear to my words. But He 
that sent me is true, and the things which I heard from 
Him, those speak I un-to the world. When ye have raised 
up on high the Son of Man, then shall ye know who I am, 
and that I do nought of my-self, but as my Fath-er has 
taught me I speak these things. And he that sent me is 
with me, he hath not left me a-lone, for I do at all times 
those things that please him. 

As he spoke these words not a few in the crowd had 
faith in Je-sus, and thought that what he said was true. 
But their hearts were as yet hard, and Je-sus spoke to them 



"I am the Light of the World." 251 

and said, If ye keep my words in your hearts and live by 
them, then shall ye prove that ye are true friends of mine. 
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you 
free. He meant that faith in him, would set them free from 
the bonds of sin and death. 

Now the Jews called A-bra-ham their fath-er, and 
thought they should all be saved be-cause of his great faith. 
This, they had been taught, gave them the right to call 
them-selves the Sons of God. So they said to Je-sus, We 
have not yet been slaves, how then canst thou say, Ye shall 
be made free ? 

Je-sus told them they were not Sons of God, but slaves 
of sin, and had no more hold on the house of God, than 
the slave had in the house where he dwelt. But the Son 
could claim a place in the house, and had rights there the 
slave did not have. If then the Son shall make you free, 
ye shall be free in-deed. I know that ye are heirs of 
A-bra-ham, but ye seek to kill me be-cause my word is not 
found in you. I speak the things which I have seen with 
the Fath-er, ye do that which ye have seen with your fath-er. 

They said, A-bra-ham is our fath-er. Je-sus said to 
them, If ye are A-bra-ham's chil-dren do as he taught you. 
But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the 
truth which I heard from God: this did not A-bra-ham. 
Ye do the works of your fath-er. 

They said to him, We have one Fath-er, that is God. 
Je-sus said to them, If God were your Fath-er, ye would 
love me ; for from God I came forth and am here ; and I 
came not of my-self, but He sent me. If ye were Sons of 
God ye would know what my words mean. 



252 "I am the Light of the World" 

These men were proud that they were Jews. They 
were not like those who bowed down to false gods, but were 
as chil-dren of one house-hold, who looked up to God as 
their Fath-er. But -that they did not love God in their 
hearts was shown by their deeds. If a dear friend should 
send his son to us, from a far off land, we would want 
to be good and kind to him if not for his own sake, 
to show how great and how true is the love we bear his 
fath-er. 

Je-sus said to them, The dev-il is your fath-er, and it is 
your will to do his works. It is not strange that you should 
want to put me to death, for since he came in-to the world 
his work has been to kill men. There is no truth in him. 
He is the fath-er of lies. But be-cause I speak the truth 
ye be-lieve me not. Which of you can charge me with sin? 
If I say what is true, why then do ye not be-lieve me? 

Je-sus laid much stress on this word, truth, be-cause he 
knew that these men were false, and were fond of lies. 
Have you not met with those who seemed to lose no 
chance to tell a lie ? who act as if it hurt them to speak the 
truth? Keep a-way from them. Go not near them, lest 
you, too, fall in-to the same sin. Speak the truth at all 
times — when it is right to speak. There are things that 
we ought not to tell. But if we can-not tell the truth, we 
need not tell a lie. We can keep still. 

Je-sus said, He that is of God, hears the words of God; 
for this cause ye hear me not, be-cause ye are not of God. 

Then said the Jews, Say we not well that thou hast a 
dev-il? Je-sus said, I have not a dev-il. I seek not praise 
for my-self, but my Fath-er seeks it for me. My cause is 



"I am the Light of the World." 253 

in His hands. And it is true, If a man have kept my word 
in his heart, he shall not die. Je-sus did not mean that 
such an one should not go in-to the grave. All must die. 
But those who have loved Je-sus, and lived as he has 
taught, shall find that death is but a sleep, from which they 
wake in the home on high. 

Then said the Jews, Now we know thou art a mad- 
man ; — for this is what they meant when they said he had a 
dev-il. A-bra-ham has died, and so have the proph-ets; 
and yet thou dost say, If a man keep my word he shall not 
die. Art thou great-er than A-bra-ham or the proph-ets ? 
Whom dost thou make out thy-self to be ? 

Je-sus said, If I seek my own glo-ry to win praise for 
my-self, there is no glo-ry. Self-praise does not raise a man. 

It is my Fath-er who gives me the glo-ry, whom ye say 
is your God. Yet ye have not known Him; but I know 
Him: and if I should say I know Him not, I should be like 
un-to you, who speak not the truth. But I know Him, and 
do His will. A-bra-ham, by faith, saw this day a-far off, 
and was glad. 

God had made it clear to A-bra-ham that in His own 
good time, He would send some one in-to the world to 
save men from their sins, and to bring all the tribes of the 
earth in-to one great tribe, in the land of peace and love. 
This gave great joy to A-bra-ham. He longed to see the 
dawn of that blest day. It was the hope of his heart. 

But these Jews were not like him. They did not make 
a right use of their ears. Their hearts were not in what 
they heard. They said to Je-sus, Thou art not yet fif-ty 
years old, and hast thou seen A-bra-ham? Je-sus said to 



254 The Man Born Blind. 

them, Be-fore A-bra-ham was born, I am. I am He 
"which is, and was, and is to come." This claim to be 
One with God was more than the Jews could bear, and 
they took up stones to throw at him, for they were in a 
great rage. But Je-sus hid him-self in the crowd, and 
went out of the Tem-ple-courts. 

Not long af-ter this, as Je-sus walked out on the Day 
of Rest, he saw a man who had been blind from his birth. 
It used to be thought that such things were sent up-on men 
for their sins; so some of the Twelve, who were with Je- 
sus, asked him the cause of this. Was he or his par-ents 
to blame? 

Je-sus said, This man did no sin, nor did his par-ents; 
at least their sins did not cause him to be born blind, but 
he is as he is that the works of God should be made known 
in him. 

The man did not ask for help. He was born blind, 
and had be-come used to the dark. Je-sus came to give 
sight to the blind, to let in the light to those who sit in the 
dark. We are blind when we do not see Je-sus as he is, 
and look on him with the clear eyes of faith. We are in 
the dark when we do not read the Word of God, and learn 
all that we can of Him, who came in-to the world to save 
us from our sins. But though men are blind, the good 
work must go on ; the good news must be told through-out 
the length and breadth of the land. Je-sus says, I must 
do the works of Him that sent me, while it is day; for the 
night comes when no one can work. As long as I am in 
the world, I am the light of the world. 

They were not to talk a-bout their work, or to stand 



The Man Born Blind. 



2 55 



and wait for some-thing to turn up. Life is short, and 
much time is lost in this way. Those who love Je-sus 
should spring to their work, and strive to do all the good 




VIL-LAGE OF SI-LO-AM. 



they can while the day-light lasts. There comes a time in 
all our lives, when we can, if we will, do good work for 
Je-sus. It is our chance to save souls. It does not last. 



^■:^xf£$%& 



v - 




POOL OF SI-LO-AM. 



The Man Born Blind, 



57 



If we let it slip by, it is gone for good. Da-vid says, My 
tongue shall speak of thy praise all the day long. Show 
me thy ways, O Lord, teach me thy paths. Lead me in 
thy truth, and teach me. On thee do I wait all the day. 

When Je-sus had said these words — I am the light of 
the world — he spat on the ground and made clay with the 
dust, and put this clay on the eyes of the blind man. And 
he said to him, Go wash in the pool of Si-lo-am. And the 
man went a-way, and washed, and came back cured. 

Those who had seen him and knew that he was blind, 
said, Is not this he that sat and beg-ged by the road-side? 
Some said, Is it he; oth-erssaid, No, but he looks like him; 
but the man said, I am he. Then they said to him, How 
did you get your sight? He said, The man called Je-sus 
made clay, and put it on my eyes, and said to me, Go to 
Si-lo-am and wash. And I went, and washed, and sight 
came to me. Then they said to him, Where is he? The 
man said, I know not. 

Je-sus might have said but one word, and the blind 
man would have been cured. But means were used to test 
his faith. Did he care to be cured? Had he just as lief 
sit by the way-side as not, and beg from day to day? Did 
he long for the light? If so, he would do as Je-sus told 
him. The pool was not far off, and he could find his way 
there with-out help, for those born blind find their way 
a-bout with great ease. He knew what the name Je-sus 
meant, but he knew nought of him who bore it. God 
makes use of strange means to bring men to Je-sus. In an 
hour when they think not the scales drop from their eyes, 
and they see how vile they are, and from that time forth 
they walk in the light. 




THE MAN BORN BLIND. 



The Mmi Bom Blind. 259 

This deed was done on the Day of Rest, and some of 
the Jews were wroth, and said, This man does not come 
from God because he keeps not the Day of Rest. Oth- 
ers said, How can a man who sins do such strange things ? 
And there was a strife a-mong them, a great war of words. 

They asked the blind man what he thought of Je-sus. 
The man said, He is a proph-et. But the Jews would not 
be-lieve that he had been born blind till they had seen and 
talked with his par-ents. And they said to them, Is this 
your son, who ye say was born blind? how then doth he 
now see? They say, We know that this is our son, and 
that he was born blind, but by what means he has been 
made to see we know not or who gave him his sight. Ask 
him ; he is of age, and can speak for him-self. 

Then they said to the man born blind, Give God the 
praise, for we know that this man is a sin-ner. The man 
said, I know not if he be a sin-ner; but this one thing I 
do know, that once I was blind and now I see. Then they 
asked him once more, What did he do to thee? How did 
he give thee thy sight ? The man said, I have told you, 
and ye did not hear, why do you wish me to tell it a-gain ? 
Do ye wish to be his dis-ci-ples ? 

Then they mocked him, and said, Thou art taught by 
him, but we are taught by Mo-ses. We know that God 
spoke to Mo-ses, but as for this man, we do not know 
where he came from. 

The man said to them, Well, it is a strange thing, that 
ye do not know where he comes from and yet he gave me 
sight. We know that God hears not those who sin ; but if 
a man serves God, and does His will, him He hears. Since 



260 The Man Born Blind. 

the world was made it has not been heard that a man gave 
sight to one born blind. If this man come not from God, 
he could not do these things. 

The Jews said to the man, Thou wast born in sins thy- 
self, and dost thou teach us? And they put him out of the 
place where they had met. Je-sus heard that they had put 
him out, and when he had found the man, he said to him, 
Dost thou be-lieve in the Son of God. The man asked, 
Who is he, that I may be-lieve in him. Je-sus said to him, 
Thou hast both seen him, and he that talks with thee is he. 
The man said, I be-lieve, Lord ; and bowed down at his 
feet. 

Je-sus said he had come in-to the world that those who 
are blind might come to him for sight, and that those who 
see might be-come blind. It was their own fault if they did 
not come to him, and for this they would be judged. Those 
who came to him like babes, who feared the dark, and kept 
hold of his hand all the way, should find a light on their 
path from day to day. 

And those who come to the light would judge them- 
selves and be vexed be-cause they were so blind as not to 
see the right way. Yet there are those who know the law, 
and have all the guides they need, and yet do not come to 
Christ. They shut their eyes to the true light, and pay no 
heed to those that point out the way. What will be their 
fate? Why, they will live in the dark. They may think 
them-selves wise, but they are not wise. For when they 
lose Je-sus they lose all the light that makes the joy of life. 

Some of the Jews who were with Je-sus as spies, when 
they heard what he said to the man born blind, asked him if 



The Man Born Blind, 261 

they too, were blind. Je-sus said to them, If ye were blind, 
ye would not have sin; but now ye say, We see, you are 
still in sin. If these Jews were in truth blind, and could 
not see the light that shone round them, they would not be 
to blame. But when they say, We see, and do not come to 
Je-sus, the Light of the world, the sin is theirs. 

Then Je-sus spoke the par-a-ble of the sheep-fold. The 
fold, where the sheep were shut in at night, was a square 
space, with a fence or wall of no great height on its four 
sides. There was but one door for the flocks to go through, 
and here a man stood on guard to see that no sheep came 
in-to the fold that had no right there. 

Each morn the shep-herds came to lead forth their 
flocks to the hill sides where the grass was green. Not 
one of those who heard Je-sus, but knew how a sheep-fold 
was made, and to what use it was put, for in the East there 
were men whose whole wealth was in flocks and herds. 

Je-sus said, He that comes not through the door of the 
sheep-fold, but climbs up some oth-er way, the same is a 
thief and a rob-ber. But he that comes in by the door is a 
shep-herd of the sheep. The man who keeps the gate knows 
him, and will let him in. The sheep hear his voice, and he 
calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out. And 
when he has put out all his own sheep, and none is left, he 
goes be-fore his flock, and they keep near him, led by the 
sound of his voice. A strange man they will not fol-low, 
but will flee from him. The sheep do not know his voice; 
he can-not call them by their names. 

Plain as these words were that Je-sus spoke, the Jews 
did not know what he meant. And he said to them as he 



262 



The Man Born Blind. 



had said be-fore, I am the door of the sheep. The door 
through which the sheep are led out of the fold. 

All those that came be-fore me are thieves and rob-bers ; 
but the sheep did not hear them. There were some who 
had claimed to be the Christ, and tried to raise false hopes 
to gain some good for them-selves. But the Jews gave no 
heed to them. Their words fell on deaf ears. 




THE GOOD SHEP-HERD. 



Je-sus said, I am the door: by me if a man go in he 
shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find rich fields 
to feed in. The thief comes not but that he may steal, and 
kill, and make a reck of all things. I came that they may 
live in the midst of joys that have no end, and that shall 
please them more and more. 



The Man Born Blind. 



263 



I am the good shep-herd. The good shep-herd gives 
his life for the sheep. He that is hired, and is not a true 
shep-herd, whose own the sheep are not, when he sees the 
wolf come, leaves the sheep and runs off to a safe place. 
And the wolf drives the sheep here and there, and breaks 
up the flock. 

The man who takes the work of a shep-herd for hire, 
and has no love for the sheep, will leave them to their fate 
when the foe draws near, and save his own life at the cost 
of theirs. Such are those who teach and preach for pay, 
and yet fail to warn the flock they have charge of, and to 
stand by them in the time of need. 

Je-sus says, I am the good shep-herd, and I know mine 
own sheep, and mine own know me. E-ven as the Fath-er 
knows me, do I know the Fath-er: 
and I lay down my life for the 
sheep. And oth-er sheep I have, 
which are not of this fold : those I 
must lead as well as these, and they 
shall hear my voice, and there shall 
be one flock and one shep-herd. 
My Fath-er loves me be-cause I 
lay down my life, that I may take 
it a-gain. No man takes it from 
me, but I lay it down of my-self. I 
have the right to lay it down and to take it a-gain. For 
in this I do the will of my Fath-er. 

There was a great strife a-mong the Jews be-cause of 
these words. Not a few said, He has a dev-il, and is mad; 
why hear ye him ? But some said, These are not the words 
of one that has a dev-il. Can a dev-il give sight to the blind ? 




A BIRD OF PREY. 



CHAPTER XV. 

JE-SUS LEAVES GAL-I-LEE. SENDS OUT THE SEV-EN-TY. 

HEALS TEN LEP-ERS. THE WOM-AN BOWED 

DOWN. PAR-A-BLE OF THE KING'S 

WED-DING FEAST. 

Je-sus went out through the lands to teach and to preach, 
and a great crowd went out with him, of those who had 
faith in his words and wished to be taught by him. From 
these Je-sus chose out three-score-and-ten, and sent them 
two and two un-to all the large and small towns, where he 
meant to come. And he said to them, The har-vest is here, 
the grain is ripe, but there are few to work in the fields. 
Go your ways. I send you forth as lambs in the midst of 
wolves. Take no purse, no bag, no shoes, and speak to 
no man on the way. This would take up too much time, 
and there was need of haste. 

When ye stop to go in-to a house, first say, Peace be to 
this house. And if it is the right kind of a house, your 
peace shall rest up-on it ; but if not, it shall come back to 
you. In that house stay, and eat and drink such things as 
they give you. Go not from house to house in search of 
ease, and the good things of life. When ye come to a town, 
and find friends there, stay and share in their lot. Heal 
the sick, and say to them, The King-dom of God has come 
nigh un-to you. But when ye come to a town where they 

264 




RU-INS ON SITE OF CHO-RA-ZIN. 



266 



Jesus Leaves Gal-i-lee> 



are not glad to see you, and will have nought to do with 
you, go out in-to the streets, and shake the dust of that town 
from your feet. But know this, that the king-dom of God 
has come nigh ; and that town shall meet with a worse fate 
than came up-on Sod-om. 

Then he told of the woes that should come up-on all 




'wuyi*P l & 



KU-INS AT CHO-RA-ZIN. 



those towns from whence he had been cast out; or which 
would not let these through their gates, who had been sent 
out in His name. And it all came true as he said, for it 
was not long ere all those towns, once so full of wealth and 
pride, were just great heaps of stones. 



Jesus Leaves Gal-i-lee* 



267 



Then Je-sus spoke those sweet words that have been like 
balm to worn-out, sin-sick ones, tired with the toils of life, 
and weighed down with a sense of their own guilt. He 
said, Come un-to me all ye that la-bor and are heav-y la- 




RU-INS OF TEM-PLE AT GER-A-SA. 



den, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke up-on you, 
and learn of me ; for I am meek and low-ly in heart; and 
ye shall find rest un-to your souls. For my yoke is ea-sy, 
and my bur-den is light. 



268 



Jesus Leaves Gal-i-lee. 



Those to whom Christ spoke were Jews, and knew 
well what he meant by these words. The Jews were fond 
of forms, and were strict in the use of them. Those who 
came to Je-sus would have rest from these toils, which did 
no good to the soul. The Jews called the law a yoke. 
Je-sus says, Take my yoke up-on you and learn of me, for 




RU-INS OF GER-A-SA, 



I am meek and low-ly in heart. He did not teach as the 
Scribes taught. They were not meek and low-ly in heart, 
but proud and vain, and apt to look down on the poor. 

The yoke of Je-sus is in the shape of a cross. We are 
not to be free from toil or care, and the yoke at times seems 



ye-sus Leaves Gal-i-lee. 



269 



hard to bear. We must go to him and be taught how to 
bear it as we ought. If we try to bear it a-lone, it weighs 
us down. But as soon as we look up to him, He makes 
it light. He shares it with us. 




TOW-ER OF AN-TO-NI-A. 



While Je-sus was at Ca-per-na-um for a few days, word 
was brought him of an out-break at Je-ru-sa-lem, in which 
some of the men from Gal-i-lee had been killed. These 



270 



ye-sus Leaves Gal-i-lee. 




N SOL-DIEUS. 



deeds had been done by 
Pi-late, who was paid by 
the Ro-mans to rule in 
the land of Ju-de-a, and 
keep a watch o-ver the 
Jews there. 

Of late there had been 
so much strife in and near 
the Tem-ple, that Her-od 
had built a tow-er close 
by, that led to it by a 
flight of steps. Here an 
armed guard was kept, so 
that if a fight took place 
the troops could rush 
down the steps at once, 
and put a stop to the noise, 
and strike down with their 
swords those who would 
not yield to the law. 

Je-sus left Gal-i-lee 
and came to the land 
where Her-od ruled. 

And some Jews came 
to him and said, Get thee 
out of this place, for Her- 
od has made up his mind 
to kill thee. Je-sus said 
to them, Go and say 
to that fox, that I 




RO-MAN ARMS. 



272 



ye-sus Leaves Gal-i-lee. 



cast out de-mons, and heal the sick, and shall stay here for 
three days more when my work comes to an end. He 
would leave Pe-re-a, not from fear of Her-od, or be-cause 
of his threats. He was on his way to meet death, but not 
in this place should he die. 




GROUP OF SA-MAR-I-TANS. 



Then as he thought of what had been done at Je-ru-sa- 
lem, he spoke with grief and pain of the fate in store for 
that town, where the Jews thought their long-looked for 
King would live and reign. 



Sends out the Sev-en-ty. 273 

Their way led through Sa-ma-ri-a, and as they drew 
near one of the small towns Je-sus sent some of the band 
a-head to find a house where they could stop and rest. 
But the folks there would not grant house-room to Je-sus 
and those with him. They would have nought to do with 
them. When John and James saw this they were in a 
fine rage, and said, Lord, wilt thou that we bring down 




LEP-ERS OUT-SIDE THE GATE. 



fire from heav-en to burn them up? But Je-sus told them 
that no such thing must be done, it was not Christ-like. 

As Je-sus went on his way there met him ten lep-ers, 
who dwelt in this place far from the haunts of men, for it was 
a-gainst the law for them to live in or near the towns. They 
were sick, and there was no cure for them. At first one 
white spot came on their flesh; then it spread, and spread, 



274 Heals Ten Left-ers. 

till there was not a bit of sound flesh on their bones, and 
they were glad to die. 

Sin is like this. At first it is but a small spot. But 
it spreads, and spreads, till soon the whole man is him-self 
a plague-spot and it is not safe to go near him. 

But these lep-ers had heard of Je-sus, and may have 
seen some of the great works that he did. And they called 
him by name, and cried out, Je-sus, Mas-ter, have mer-cy 
on us. Help us we pray! And when he saw them, he 
said to them, Go and show your-selves to the priest. They 
had faith to rise and go. They did not hold back, and ask 
to be cured in some way that they thought best. But when 
Je-sus told them to go, they went, and on the way they 
were made well. And one of them, when he felt that he 
had been brought back to health, turned back, and with a 
loud voice gave praise to God. And he fell down on his 
face at the feet of Je-sus, and gave thanks to him, with a 
heart full of love. And he was from Sa-ma-ri-a, and had 
been brought up to hate the Jews. 

Je-sus said, Were not the ten cleansed? but where are 
the nine ? Were there none that came back to give thanks 
to God but this stran-ger? He called him this be-cause 
he and his kins-folk were not friends with the race of Jews. 
The nine were Jews, who thought more of what they owed 
to the priests than of what they owed to God, which showed 
that their hearts were not yet free from sin. 

Je-sus said to the one who came back, Rise, and go on 
thy way ; thy faith hath made thee whole. 

Do we give thanks to God as we ought? We are sick, 
and He makes us well; and we go on our way, light of 




JE-SUS PREACH-ING IN THE SYN-A-GOGUE. 



276 



Heals Ten Left-ers. 



heart once more, and yet with scarce a thought of what we 
owe to him. 




RU-TNS OF A SYN-A-COGUE. 



We take care to thank our friends for what they do for 
us, but are slow to give thanks to God. We are in haste 



The Wom-an Bowed Down, 277 

to get back to the world, as the lep-ers were. We take all 
we can get, and in our love of self, give noth-ing back. 
The Lord waits up-on us. He is good to us. Is it too 
much then for us to turn to Him, and say, Lord, I thank 
thee! and to lift up our hearts in praise to Him? 

When the Day of Rest came round, Je-sus went to one 
of the syn-a-gogues and taught there. And there was a 
wom-an there, who for near a score of years had been so 
bowed down that she could not lift her-self up. It was as 
if she were tied down with cords she could not break. 

When Je-sus saw her, he called her to him, and said, 
Wom-an, thou art loosed from thy bonds. And he laid 
his hands up-on her; and at once she was made straight, 
and gave praise to God. The ru-ler of the church was 
wroth that Je-sus had done this work on the Day of 
Rest. But he did not dare to find fault with him to his 
face, so spoke to those who were in the church in thiswise: 
There are six days, he said, in which men ought to 
work; if there are those of you who wish to be cured, come 
then, and not on the Day of Rest. 

There are some folks who dare not come out and strike 
a blow, but will say sharp things that hurt and sting. They 
will not say these sharp words to the face of the one they 
wish to hurt, or scold, but will speak as this man did. 
Well did those in church know whom he wished to hit, and 
their eyes and ears were fixed on him who stood in the 
midst of them, and taught as no one else did. What would 
he say ? What would he do ? They would have been cast 
down with shame, had they done aught to call down such 
a curt speech as that from the head man in the church : the 
one set to rule the rest. 



278 The Wom-an Bowed Down. 

But the Lord spoke to him, and said, Does not each 
one of you loose his ox or his ass from the stall, on the Day of 
Rest, and lead him to the place where he may drink ? And 
ought not this poor wom-an who has been bound in sin for 
so long a time, be loosed from her chains on the Day of 
Rest? And when he had said this all his foes hung their 
heads with shame; and he was heard with joy by those in the 
crowd who were glad of the things he had done. 

Now the Jews gave feasts on the Day of Rest, but 
none of the food was cooked on that day, and as Je-sus 
went in-to the house of one of the chief men of the Jews, 
to dine with him, a close watch was kept up-on all that he 
said and did. He was in the midst of foes, and he knew 
it. And there was there a man who had the drop-sy. He 
was not a guest, but had been brought there to see what 
Je-sus would do. 

Je-sus, who knew their thoughts, said to these men of 
the law, Is it right to cure the sick on the Day of Rest, or 
not ? But they held their peace. They had not a word to 
say. And Je-sus took hold of the man, and healed him, 
and sent him a-way. And he said to those who had been 
called to the feast, If one of you had an ass or an ox fall in- 
to a pit, would you not pull him out at once though it were 
on the Day of Rest? They knew that they would, and so 
had nought to say to these things. 

The guests at this time filled the room, and there was 
more or less strife as to which should have the first place, 
or the best seat. It is so to this day. When great feasts 
are made, the choice seats are left for those of high rank. 
This is the cause of a great deal of pride, and of hard 
words and looks. 



Par-a-ble of the King's Wed-ding Feast, 279 

Je-sus took this for his text, and spoke to those who 
were bid to the feast when he saw how they chose the chief 
seats. He said to them, When thou art bid to a wed-ding 
feast sit not down in the chief place, lest some one of high 
rank should come, and the host should say to thee, Give 
this man thy place. Then thou shalt go with shame to a seat 
at the far end of the board. But when thou art bid to a 
feast, go and sit down in a low place; so that when he that 
has bid thee comes in-to the room, he may say to thee, 
Friend, go up to a high place. Then shalt thou be well 
thought of by all those who sit at meat with thee. For 
he who makes too much of him-self shall be put down ; and 
he who keeps him-self in the back-ground, shall be raised up 
to a high place. 

Then he said to them, as if he spoke to each one, When 
thou dost make a feast, call not thy friends nor kins-folk, 
nor those who are rich, lest they make a feast for thee, and 
so pay thee back. But call in the poor, the maimed, the 
lame, the blind, and thou shalt be blest, for they can-not 
pay thee back. But thou shalt have thy pay at the Last 
Day. 

We are not to do good deeds in the hope of gain, nor to 
have our-selves talked a-bout. If we have a real love of 
God in our hearts we will seek to do good to all who are in 
need, with no thought of pay. We may give time, and 
thought, and care to some one who is sick, and the sick 
one may be cross and hard to please; but we must not 
give up, and think the work does not pay. It pays 
well, for it does us good to work for Je-sus, and the 
true heart is glad to be of use in the world. There is a 



280 Par-a-ble of the King's Wed-ding Feast. 

place for us, and work to do, and if we find the work hard 
we must ask Je-sus to help us, and he will. And he pays 
us for all that we do for him. When one of those that sat 
at meat with Je-sus, heard these things, he said to him, 
Blest is he that shall eat bread in the King-dom of God. 
Je-sus said, A man once made a great sup-per, and bade a 
great crowd come to it. And he sent forth his ser-vant 
at sup-per time to say to those he wished to be his guests, 
Come, for things are now read-y. And they all be-gan to 
make some sort of ex-cuse. 

The first said to him, I have bought a field, and I must 
needs go out and look at it. The next said, I have bought 
five yoke of ox-en, and am on my way to try them, and see 
if they are worth what I paid for them. A third said, I 
have just ta-ken a wife, so of course I can-not come. So 
the ser-vant went and told his mas-ter these things. 

Then the mas-ter of the house was wroth to think that 
his friends would so slight his feast ; and he said to his ser- 
vant, Go out with haste in-to the broad-ways and streets 
of the town, and bring in the poor, and maimed, the lame 
and the blind. 

And the ser-vant did so. And he came back and said, 
Lord, what thou didst bid me do is done, and yet there is 
room. Then the lord said to the ser-vant, Go out in-to the 
high-ways and by the hedge-rows, and urge them to come in, 
that my house may be well filled with guests. For I say 
un-to you that none of those that did not come when I 
bade them shall sit down at my feast. 

The man who made the feast is God. Those whom he 
bade come in were the Jews. The ser-vant sent out is 



Par-a-ble of the King's Wed-ding Feast. 



281 



Christ. He speaks to the Jews, but they do not heed him. 
They have plans of their own. Then he is sent out to call 




THE WED-DING FEAST. 



in the poor, and all those who will come. And yet there 
is room ! So he is sent out once more to urge those who 



282 Par-a-ble of the King's Wed-ding Feast. 

have no homes of their own, whose feet are bruised and sore, 
and who are faint for want of food, to come in, and find 
sweet rest and joy in the dear home on high. 

These words were food for thought to the man who had 
said to Je-sus, Blest is he that shall eat bread in the King- 
dom of God. Love God. When he says, Come, come; 
and do not wait to be forced in to a feast which is spread 
for you. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

THE UN-JUST STEW-ARD. THE RICH MAN AND LAZ-A-RUS. 

THE GOOD SA-MAR-I-TAN THE PROD-I-GAL 

SON. THE LOST SHEEP. THE LOST 

PIECE OF SIL-VER. 

Je-sus spoke once more in a way to make the crowd 
think, and find out in their own minds what he meant. 
He said to them, There was a rich man who had word 
brought to him that one of his slaves, one who had charge 
of a great deal of his goods, was false to his trust. He 
lived on the fat of the land, and paid all his bills out of the 
lord's means. And the lord sent for him, and said, What 
is this that I hear of thee ? Show me what thou hast done 
for me; for thou canst take charge of my goods no more. 

Then the stew-ard said to him-self, What shall I do now 
I am to lose the place I filled? I have not strength to dig; 
and am too proud to beg. I know what I will do, so that 
when I lose my place I shall not be left quite out-of-doors. 

So he sent for those who had bought goods of the rich 



The Un-just Stew-a?'d. 283 

man and had not yet paid him ; and he said to the first, How 
much dost thou owe my lord ? He said, A hundred gal-Ions 
of oil. He said to him, Take thy bill, and sit down at once, 
and write fif-ty. Then to the next one he said, How much 
dost thou owe ? And he said, A hun-dred tubs of wheat. 
He saith to him, Take thy bill, and write four-score. And 
the mas-ter of the un-just stew-ard praised him be-cause 
he had been so shrewd ; for the sons of this world are far 
more wise than the sons of the light. He told them to use 
their wealth to make friends, so that when their wealth was 
gone they might still have a home with the friends they had 
made. The friends that Je-sus means are the an-gels, who 
will be glad, to greet us, and to share their home with us 
when we have done with the things of this world. 

The Jews who thought a great deal of wealth, sneered 
at Je-sus for these words. And he said to them, Ye are 
those who seem to men to be pure and good; but God 
knows your hearts, and that which calls forth the praise of 
men, does not please God in the least. 

The sons of this world are those who live for self. The 
sons of the light are those who live for Christ. Bad men, who 
live for self, are more sharp and shrewd than good men, 
and are all the time on the look-out for what they call the 
main chance. We are to look up-on the wealth God gives 
us as not our own, but His. In this case of which Je-sus 
spoke, both mas-ter and ser-vant were sharp men, and the 
mas-ter praised the stew-ard for his tricks. But God is not 
pleased when men waste the wealth he has placed in their 
hands. They should make a wise use of it. For though 
they may cheat men, and play tricks on them, they can-not 



284 The Rich Man and Laz-a-rus. 

cheat God. He knows them, and knows whom they serve. 
They are slaves of the dev-il. 

That he might teach them the right use of wealth, Je- 
sus said, There was a rich man who was clothed in fine 
robes, some of which were worth their weight in gold; and 
he lived well from day to day. And there was a poor man, 
named Laz-a-rus, who was brought each day and laid at 
his gate that he might beg from those who came out or went 
in. He would have been glad of some of the crumbs that 
fell from the rich man's board, but none of these were 
brought to him. He was full of sores, and the rich man 
might have sent out some salve to heal them. But this he 
did not do, nor did he feed the dogs, and so they came and 
licked the sores of the poor man, and made his woes far 
more hard to bear. 

At last the poor man died, and was borne by an-gels 
to his home on high. And in time the rich man died, and 
was laid in his grave. The Jews, when they spoke of the 
dead, said that they had gone to A-bra-ham's bo-som. 
In hell — the place of lost souls — where he was in great 
pain, he raised his eyes and saw A-bra-ham a-far off, and 
Laz-a-rus with his head up-on his breast. And he cried 
out and said, Fath-er A-bra-ham, have mercy on me, and 
send Laz-a-rus, that he may dip the tip of his fin-ger in 
wa-ter, and cool my tongue, for I am sore vexed in this 
flame. 

But A-bra-ham said, Son, in thy life-time thou didst 
have thy share of good things, and Laz-a-rus had none; 
now here he is rich, and thou art poor. And this is not all, 
for be-tween us and you there is a great gulf fixed ; so that 




THE BEG-GAR AT THE RICH MAN'S GATE. 



286 The Rich Man and Laz-a-rus . 

those who wish to go from here to you can-not; nor can 
those cross who wish to come to us from where you are. 

Then the rich man said, I pray thee then that thou 
wouldst send him to my fath-er's house, that he may speak 
to my five broth-ers, lest they come to this dread place that 
I am in. 

A-bra-ham said to him, They have Mo-ses and the 
proph-ets, let them hear them. He said, Nay, fath-er 
A-bra-ham, but if one went to them from the dead, they 
will be led to give up their sins. And he said to him, If 
they hear not Mo-ses and the proph-ets — if the Word of 
God does not find its way to their hearts — they will not 
hear the truth though one should rise from the dead. 

The rich man had made the wealth of earth his chief 
good. He lived in sin, and did not try in the least to 
please God. The scene that Je-sus drew was to teach 
these Jews, that af-ter death would be too late to say they 
were sor-ry for their sins. 

We teach more by our lives than we do by our words. 
This rich man might have thought of his kins-folk, and 
tried to lead a good life for their sakes, as well as his own. 
If they were lost, it was his fault. Hosts of those who 
lead lives of sin, think they will make it all right with God 
on their death-bed. They pass the eighth hour, the ninth, 
the tenth. They have but two hours more, but they will 
be long ones. There will be time e-nough. They will be 
old then, and will not care so much for the things of this 
world. But self has ruled too long to be put a-side. And 
what if there is no death-bed? If you are cut off in your 
sins, with-out time to think, to speak, or to pray, what 



The Rich Man and Laz-a-rus. 287 

then ? You may drop down dead, and have no time to warn 
those you love not to do as you have done. The sick-bed 
is no place to make your peace with God. See to that 
when you are well and strong. Learn to love Je-sus while 
you are young. Give your heart to him in the first fresh 
glow of youth, when you have strength to work for him. It 
is not safe to put it off. You may put it off too late. 

Then there stood up a Scribe, who taught the law of 
Mo-ses; and that he might find out if Je-sus taught in the 
same way, or try to get him to say some-thing new, he 
asked him, What shall I do to be saved ? 

He was full of pride, and self-love. He was well-read 
in the law, which he taught ; and might be seen at all times 
with book in hand, and the marks of deep thought on his 
brow. He spoke to Je-sus in a way that said, What canst 
thou teach me that I do not know? He thought he should 
hear of some new or great thing, that was not laid down 
in the law of Mo-ses. He did not claim to be rich in this 
world's goods, he had no gold to waste; but he had a fine 
mind, and was proud of it. What shall I do, he asked, to 
win this life which lasts be-yond the grave ? 

Je-sus said to him, What is in the law you teach? Let 
us hear how you read it. The scribe said, Thou shalt love 
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, 
and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind ; and thy 
neigh-bor as thy-self. 

Je-sus said to him, Thou hast learned it well. This 
do and thou shalt live. The words of the law were on his 
lips, he could say them all right, but they were not in his 
heart. He was a shrewd man and knew that this was 



The Good Sa-mar-i-tan, 



what Je-sus meant, so to throw off the blame, as it were, he 
asked, Who is my neigh-bor? 

Je-sus spoke to him in a par-able, so that he might 
with words paint a scene on the mind of this man of the 





JEW-ISH PRIEST. 



A LE-VITE. 



law that he would not soon lose sight of. Je-sus said to 
him, A man went down from Je-ru-sa-lem to Jer-i-cho, 
and on the way he fell in-to the hands of thieves who strip- 
ped him, and beat him, and left him half dead by the road- 
side. By chance there came a priest that way, and when he 



The Good Sa-mar-i-tan. 



289 



saw the poor man in so sad a plight, he did not stop, but 
passed by on the oth-er side. 




ROB-BERS ON THE ROAD TO JER-I-CHO. 



Then a Le-vite, who was well read in the law, drew 
near the place, and saw him, and he, too, passed by and 




HALF DEAD BY THE ROAD-SIDE. 



The Good Sa-mar-i-tan, 291 

gave him no help. But a Sa-mar-i-tan, who was on his 
way to trade at one of the towns, came where the poor man 
was, and when he saw the plight he was in, his heart was 
sad. And he came to him, and bound up his wounds, 
poured on them oil and wine, set him on his own beast, and 
brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next 
day, when he left, he took out two pence and gave them to 
the host, and said, Take care of him ; and if thou hast need 
to spend more, the next time I come I will pay it back to 
thee. 

Which of these three, dost thou think, was neigh-bor 
to the one who fell in the midst of thieves ? And he said, 
He that was kind to him. And Je-sus said to him, Go, 
and do thou like-wise. In this way did Je-sus teach what 
man owes to man, and give force to the rule — Do as you 
would be done by. 

The priest, though it was part of his work to care for 
the sick, and to give help to all who were in need, had not 
a warm heart, or he could not have passed by the poor 
man who had been set on by thieves. We are to do good 
to all, and not to stop and look at a man's clothes, or to find 
out to what church he goes. If he is a Jew and needs 
help, be quick to give it. If he is black and needs help, 
do not turn a-way and say, Let the black folks help him. 
He has been put in your way for you to help. Do good 
when you can, and where you can, and to whom you can. 
This is all God asks of us. 

Near this time three-score and ten men whom Je-sus 
had sent out to do his work, came back, and with great joy 
told what they had done. And they said to him, Lord, in 



292 



The Prod-i-gal Son. 



thy name have we had strength to cast out dev-ils. Je-sus 
shared in their joy, and gave thanks to God. And he said 
that they should do more than they had done, and he would 
pledge them his word to keep them from all harm. But 
they were not to joy in their own deeds, or what they could 
do in Christ's name, for the joy of joys was that their own 
names were writ in the Book of Life. 

Je-sus then told them the par-a-ble of the Prod-i-gal 
Son. A prod-i-gal is one who spends all he is worth. One 
who wastes. 




PALMS AND PLAINS OF JER-T-CHO. 



Je-sus said, There was a rich man who had two sons. 
And one of these had no love for his home or his fath-er, 
and he said, Fath-er, give me my share of what will come 
to me as thine heir. And the fath-er did so. And in a few 
days this sort went off in-to a far land, and led a life of sin. 
And when he had spent all, there came a dearth of food in 
the land, and he was in great want. So starved was he 
that he would fain have filled him-self with the husks 
that the swine did eat. When he saw the swine fed he 
craved a share of their food, but no man gave as much as 
this to him. 



The Prod-i-gal Son. 293 

When he came to him-self, he said, The hired ser-vants 
of my fath-er have more bread than they can eat, while here 
I starve, and am like to die for want of food ! I will rise 
and go to my fath-er, and will say un-to him, Fath-er, I 
have sinned a-gainst heav-en and in thy sight, and do not 
de-serve to be called thy son. Make me as one of thy 
hired ser-vants. And he rose and went to his fath-er. 

While he was yet a great w r ay off his fath-er saw him, 
and in the joy of his heart he ran out to meet him, and fell on 
his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, Fath-er 
I have sinned a-gainst heav-en and in thy sight, and no more 
have the right to be called thy son. But the fath-er said to 
his ser-vants, Bring forth with haste the best robe, and put 
it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his 
feet. And kill the fat-ted calf and let us have a feast of 

Now the son who did not leave his home was at this 
time out in the field. And as he came near the house he 
heard the sound of mu-sic and the dance, and called one of 
the ser-vants to him and asked what it meant. The man 
said to him, Thy bro-ther is here; and thy fath-er hath 
killed the fat-ted calf for joy that he hath come back safe 
and sound. 

The son who heard these words, was so an-gry that he 
would not go in-to the house ; and his fath-er came out and 
coaxed him. And he said to his fath-er, Lo, for a long 
term of years have I served thee, and done as thou wouldst 
have me; and yet thou didst not give me so much as a kid, 
that I might make a feast for my friends. But as soon as 
this thy son came, who hath led a fast life, thou didst kill 



294 The Prod-i-gal Son. 

for him the fat-ted calf. There was no love in this son's 
heart. He had done his work in hope of gain. 

The fath-er said to him, Son, thou art with me all the 
time, and all that is mine is thine. But it was right that 
we should make a feast for our friends, and to be glad with 
a great joy. For this thy broth-er was dead and is now 
a-live ; he was lost, and is found. 

Our Lord meant to show by these two sons the two 
kinds of men there are in the world. Some fret at the 
chains, and long to be free; and they go out in the world 
and lead a life of sin, and are for a while like mad men. 
Then all at once they come to a sense of their sins, are 
shocked at what they have done, and full of shame. They 
long for the Bread of Life. They want some one to tell 
them what to do and to speak a kind word to them. But 
no one comes near them. At last in their rags and their 
shame they come to God, who did not cast them off, but 
whom they turned from of their own free will. 

Do they have to wait and beg for Him to take them 
back? No. He sees them. He runs out to meet them. 
God's grace meets us more than half-way. In His love He 
puts on them the robe, the ring, and the shoes — the signs 
that mark them as the Son's of God — and all the an-gels 
share in His joy. 

The son who staid at home is like those who go to 
church, keep all God's laws, and think no one is quite so 
good as they are. They are puffed up with pride, and love 
of self, and till they get rid of these sins can have no share 
in the joy the an-gels know. 

They need a change of heart just as much as do those 



The Prod-i-gal Son. 



2 95 



who have steeped them-selves in sin. As soon as they turn 
to God, and ask His help, He gives them strength to do 
the right and shun the wrong, and they have while on 
earth, a joy the world can-not give. 




WOM-AN OF NAZ-A-RETH. 



Je-sus said to the crowd that drew near, What man of 
you, if he owns a hun-dred sheep and has lost one of them 
does not leave the nine-ty and nine in the field, and go 



296 The Lost Piece of Sil-ver. 

search for the one that is lost till he find it ? And when 
he hath found it, he bears it in his arms and brings it back 
with joy. And when he comes home he calls in his friends 
and his neigh-bors, and says to them, Be glad with me 
for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say un-to 
you that there will be more joy in heav-en when one who 
has been lost in sin is brought to God, than o-ver nine-ty 
and nine of those who have led good lives, and are in the 
fold. 

It is said that the wom-en of Naz-a-reth still wear a 
head-dress of small sil-ver coins, which Je-sus had in mind 
when he said : 

Or what wom-an who has ten sil-ver coins, if she lose 
one piece, doth not light a lamp, and sweep the house, and 
search hard till she finds it? And when she has found it, 
she calls in her friends and those who live near her and 
says to them, Be glad with me, for I have found the piece 
which I lost. So I say to you there is joy in heav-en 
when one who was lost in sin, is brought back, and strives 
to lead a new life. 

When some of the Jews who sought to kill Je-sus asked 
him when the King-dom of God should come, he told them 
there were no signs by which men could tell. False Christs 
might cry out Lo, it is here! or lo, it is there! but the hopes 
thus raised would soon come to nought. The King-dom 
of God he said, is in the midst of you. He meant that the 
King was then with them. The King-dom of God is where 
Je-sus is — His throne is in the hearts of those who love 
Him, and who do His will. 

When the Jews who sought to kill Je-sus had gone 



The Lost Piece of Sil-ver. 297 

their way, he spoke to those who were glad to be taught by 
him. And he said, As it was in the days of No-ah, so 
shall it be in the days of the Son of Man. They did eat, 
and drink, and made no change in their ways till the day 
that No-ah went in-to the ark, and the flood came and 
drowned them all. So it was in the days of Lot. They 
ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they sowed seed, and 
built homes and barns. But in the day that Lot went from 
Sod-om God sent down fire and brim-stone and burnt up 
all that was in it. So shall it be in the day that the Son of 
Man comes. He told them to think how it was with Lot's 
wife. She set out all right and would have been saved, 
but she looked back and was lost. 

Lot's wife was loath to give up the things of this world, 
the gay life, and the wealth that had been hers in the land 
of Sod-om. She looked back, and was lost! It is not 
meant, I think, that she was turned in-to real salt, but as 
salt gave a taste to food, so would this last act of hers do 
more good than she had done in her life. For it would 
stand out in the Word of God, as a sign to all, to turn 
from sin, and not look back lest they be lost. And Je-sus 
said to them, Watch, for ye know not on what day your 
Lord comes. 

They said to him, Where Lord? Where shall this 
thing take place? But the words he spoke left them still 
in doubt. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

MA-RY's CHOICE. THEY BRING YOUNG CHIL-DREN TO JE- 
SUS. THE YOUNG RU-LER. THE WORK-MEN IN THE 

VINE-YARD. THE HIGH-PRIEST TELLS THAT 

JE-SUS MUST DIE. 

On the way to and from Je-ru-sa-lem Je-sus had to pass 
through Beth-a-ny. It was a small town, but an hour's 
walk from Je-ru-sa-lem, and here lived two sis-ters, named 
Mar-tha and Ma-ry. It was a great joy to them to have 
Je-sus for their guest, and he was glad to rest there, and 
feel that he was with friends. It was some time since he 
had been to the house, and both Mar-tha and Ma-ry were 
glad to see his face once more. As soon as he came in, 
Ma-ry sat down at the Lord's feet to hear what he had to 
say. 

But Mar-tha kept the house, and found so much work 
to do that she could not sit still. There was nought too 
good in her house for this guest, and she wished to have 
the food well cooked, and all as it should be. But she 
found that she had more to do than she could get through 
with, and was in need of help. So she came to where Je- 
sus was, and said to him, Lord, dost thou not care that my 
sis-ter has left me to do all the work a-lone? Bid her 
come and help me. 

Je-sus said to her, Mar-tha, Mar-tha, thou art full of 

298 




KU-INS OF RETH-A-NY 



3°o 



Ma-ry's Choice. 



care, and vexed with things that take up much of thy time. 
There is need of but one thing; and Ma-ry chose for her- 
self the good part, that none shall take a-way from her. 




BETH-A-NY. 



Mar-tha wished to do some-thing to show her love for 
Je-sus, when it would have been as well for her to sit down 
at his feet and learn of him. He was to be at the house 
but a short time, and Ma-ry thought not of food or drink, 



302 Ma-ry^s Choice, 

or the cares of the house, so great was her joy to be near 
her Lord. 

Mar-tha takes her place with those who think more 
of works than of faith, Ma-ry with those who think more 
of faith than of works. This is what Je-sus meant when he 
said she chose the good part. She fed on the bread of 
life by faith in his word. 

It is wise to make such a choice. To sit at his feet in 
a calm frame of mind, to do his work with-out fuss or noise. 
We are not to find fault with those who do not show their 
love for Je-sus in the same way that we do. We do not all 
think a-like or act a-like. Je-sus loved both Mar-tha and 
Ma-ry, and he knew they loved him. 

There was now a feast at Je-ru-sa-lem and it was win- 
ter. The feast was kept up for eight days. And Je-sus 
walked in the courts, and in Sol-o-mon's porch, which was 
on the east side of the Tem-ple. There was a roof to this 
porch, so that at all times of the year it was a fine place to 
walk in. Then the Jews came round him, and said to him, 
How long wilt thou keep us in doubt? If thou art the 
Christ, tell us so in plain words. 

Je-sus said, I told you, and ye be-lieve not. The works 
that I do in my Fath-er's name show who I am. But ye 
be-lieve not, be-cause ye are not of my sheep. My sheep 
hear my voice, and I know them, and they come with me. 
They are safe with me; and no one shall snatch them out 
of my hand. My Fath-er gave them to me ; there is no one 
so great as He; and no one can pluck out of God's hand. 
I and the Fath-er are one. 

The Jews took up stones that lay near to throw at him, 




THEN THE JEWS TOOK UP STONES. 



304 They Bring Young Chil-dren to yes us. 

but were stop-ped by the words of Je-sus. For he said, 
Good works not a few have I showed you from the Fath-er; 
for which of these works do ye stone me? The Jews said, 
For a good work we stone thee not ; but be-cause thou, 
who art a man, dost make thy-self one with God. 

Je-sus said, If I do not the works of my Fath-er, be- 
lieve me not. But if I do, and ye be-lieve not me, be- 
lieve the works : that ye may know, and see that the Fajth-er 
is in me, and I in the Fath-er. It was, as though he said, 
Look at my life, look at my works, and let them speak for 
me. 

They dared not stone him, but they tried to seize him. 
But they could not. He slipped out of their hands and 
made his way to Beth-a-ny, where he spent some time, and 
taught, and wrought great works there. 

When he came to Pe-re-a they brought to him young 
chil-dren, that he might put his hands on them and bless 
them. Some did not like this, and wished them sent 
a-way. But Je-sus said, Let the lit-tle chil-dren come to 
me. Do not send them a-way. None are too young to 
come to Christ. And he laid his hands on them, and 
blest them. When Je-sus went out on the road, for he did 
not stay long in one place, a young ru-ler ran up to him, and 
knelt down and asked him, Good mas-ter, what shall I do 
to be saved? Je-sus said, Why dost thou call me good? 
There is none good, but one, and that is, God. But if 
thou in truth wouldst be saved, keep all God's laws: Do 
not kill. Do not steal. Do not lie, or cheat; and do as 
your fath-er and moth-er tell you. The young man said to 
him, All these things have I kept from my youth up, and 



The Young Ru-ler. 305 

now what else do I lack?, Je-sus said to him, One thing 
else dost thou lack. Go and sell all that thou hast and 
give to the poor, and thou shalt be rich in heaven, and come 
with me. He was to give up all things for Christ's sake. 
When the young man heard this, he went a- way sad at heart, 
for he had great wealth. 

Je-sus looked round, and said to those with him, How 
hard it shall be for those who trust in their wealth to find 
their way in-to the King-dom of God. And they were 
a-mazed at his words. And he said to them, As hard as it 
would be for a cam-el — with a hump on his back, and a 
great load be-sides — to get through a small hole, just so 
hard would it be for a rich man to get through the small 
gate that leads to the King-dom of God. 

When the Twelve heard this they said, Who then can 
be saved? Je-sus looked up-on them with a sad gaze, for he 
had thought they would not be so dull, and he said to them, 
What man can-not do, God can, and will do. For He can 
do all things. 

It is not wealth that keeps men back from Christ, but 
the love of it. They cling to it so, and grow so fond of the 
things of this world, that they take no thought of the next 
world. And oh, how poor and mean their souls grow, and 
how much they miss ! We can take none of our wealth 
out of this world. We must leave it all, when we die. 

Pe-ter spoke up, and said to Je-sus, Lo, we have left 
all and have come with thee. Je-sus said, There is no 
man that hath left house and lands and kins-men for my 
sake, and for the sake of that which I preach, but shall have 
his re-ward in this world and the next. But some that are 
first shall be last. 



-^o6 The Work-men iii the Vine-yard. 

Pe-ter did not mean to boast of what he had done for 
Je-sus, but his hopes were mixed some-what with fears, 
and it did him good to speak out what was in his mind. If 
this rich man would find it hard to get in-to heav-en, what 
chance would the poor man have? Je-sus made it clear to 
him, and to us, that heav-en joins close on to this world, 
and be-gins as soon as we give our hearts to Je-sus, and 
take him as our guard and guide. We must say as Pe-ter 
did, Lo, we have left all, and have come with thee; and 
must feel that the world is well lost for such a gain as ours. 

Je-sus said, The King-dom of God is like a man who 
went out at day-break to hire men to work in his vine-yard. 
And when they said they would work for the pay he would 
give, he sent them out where his vines were. 

At the third hour — at nine o'clock — he went out to the 
mar-ket place, and saw men there who were out of work. 
And he said to them, Go ye and work in my vine-yard. 
And they went and did as he told them. And at the sixth 
and the ninth hour — at twelve and at three o'clock— he 
went out and found more men who were out of work, and 
said the same thing to them. At five o'clock he went out 
for the fifth time, and found more men with nought to do. 
And he said to them, Why waste ye your time in this way? 
They said, Be-cause no one has hired us. He said to 
them, Go work in my vine-yard. 

At the close of the day, the lord of the vine-yard said 
to his fore-man, Call the work-men and pay them all, from 
the last to the first. And when those came that were hired 
near six o'clock, each man was paid for a full day's work. 
When the first men came, they thought they would be paid 




MA-RY BATHES THE FEET OF CHRIST. 



308 The Work- men in the Vine-yard. 

more; but the same sum was placed in their hands. And 
they found fault with the good man of the house, and said 
to him, These last were but one hour at work, and thou 
hast paid them the same as us, who toiled all day long in 
the dust and heat. 

But he said to one of them, Friend, I do thee no wrong. 
Didst thou not say thou wouldst do my work for so much 
a day? Take up that which is thine, and go thy way. It is 
my will to give to this last one the same that I gave to 
thee. Is it not right for me to do what I will with mine 
own ? So the last shall be first, and the first last. 

The vine-yard is the world. The man who owns it is 
God. The work-men are those who are sent out to teach 
and preach, and to turn men from their sins. The stew- 
ard, or fore-man, is Christ, who pays off all those who work, 
in his name. It means, too, that all those who come to 
Christ late in life, shall be paid the same as those who 
came in their youth. We are not to count our time, nor 
feel that what we do is worth more than what some one else 
does. God knows what is best for us. We are to do His 
will, not ours, and to be not proud or vain. For those 
who put them-selves first He will put last. 

Je-sus was now on his way to Je-ru-sa-lem, and for the 
last time. And while he still taught at Pe-re-a, word was 
brought to him that Laz-a-rus, the broth-erof Mar-tha and 
Ma-ry was sick. And the sis-ters beg-ged Je-sus to come 
and see him at their home in Beth-a-ny. When Je-sus 
heard it, he said that Laz-a-rus would not die, but was laid 
on a sick-bed to show forth the works of the Son of God, 
and by this means bring praise to God the Fath-er. 



Laz-a-rus Raised from the Dead. 309 

Now Je-sus loved Mar-tha, her sis-ter, and Laz-a-rus, 
yet when he had sent the word back to them, he staid on in 
the place where he was. At the end of two days he said to 
the Twelve, Let us go in-to Ju-de-a once more. They said 
to him, Mas-ter, it is not long since the Jews tried to stone 
thee; and wilt thou go there a-gain? Je-sus said, Is not 
the day twelve hours long? If a man walk in the day he 
makes no false step, be-cause he sees the light of this world. 
But if a man walk in the night he trips be-cause the light 
is not in him. Then he said to them, Our friend Laz-a- 
rus sleeps ; but I go to wake him out of his sleep. They said 
to him, Lord, if he sleeps he shall do well. 

Je-sus spoke of his death; but they thought that he 
spoke of the rest one takes in sleep. So he had to tell them 
in plain words, Laz-a-rus is dead. And I am glad, he said, 
for your sakes that I was not there, for now I go to bring 
him back to life. Then said Thom-as, one of the Twelve, 
Let us go, that we may die with him. Not with Laz-a-rus, 
but with Je-sus. It was as if he said to the rest, The 
Jews will be sure to put him to death this time, they hate 
him so. We can-not save him, but we can share his fate. 
Come, let us go and die with him. 

When Je-sus came to Beth-a-ny he found that Laz-a- 
rus had lain four days in . ? tomb. Now Beth-a-ny was 
but a few miles from Je-ru-sa-lcm, and the Jews came from 
there to see Mar-tha and Ma-ry and to weep and mourn 
with them. While Ma-ry sat still in the house, bowed 
down with grief, word came to Mar-tha that Je-sus was 
near at hand, and she went out at once to meet him. And she 
said to Je-sus, with tears in her voice, Lord, if thou hadst 



310 Laz-a-rus Raised from the Dead. 

been here my broth-er had not died. But I know that 
e-ven now the things thou shalt ask of God, He will give 
thee. 

Je-sus said to her, Laz-a-rus shall rise from the dead. 
Mar-tha said to him, I know that he shall rise at the Last 
Day. Je-sus said, I am the Life — of this world and the 
next. He that has faith in me, though he has died, yet 
shall he live. And those who live and be-lieve in me, shall 
not die. Christ is the Lord of Life. 

Je-sus said to Mar-tha, Dost thou be-lieve this? She 
said to him, Yes, Lord, I be-lieve that thou art the Christ, 
the Son of God, who has come in-to the world. When 
she had said this she went in quest of her sis-ter, and said 
to her in a low voice, The Mas-ter is here, and asks for 
thee. 

When Ma-ry heard this she rose in haste and went out 
where Je-sus was. The Jews that were with her in the 
house, when they saw her rise and go out, made haste to join 
her. For they thought that she went to the tomb to weep 
there. They did not know she had gone to meet her 
Lord. 

When Ma-ry came where Je-sus was, and saw him, 
she feel at his feet, and said, Lord, if thou hadst been here 
my broth-er would not have died. When Je-sus saw how 
she wept, and how the Jews wept with her, his heart was 
moved to its depths. And he said, Where have ye laid 
him ? They say to him, Lord, come and see. Je-sus wept. 
When the Jews saw him shed tears they said, See how he 
loved him. But some of them said, Could not he who 
gave the blind their sight have saved this man from death ? 




LAZ-A-RUS RAISED FROM THE DEAD. 



312 



Laz-a-rus Raised form the Dead. 



Je-sus, still moved by the hate of the Jews, went out to 
the tomb. It was not a grave dug out of the ground, but 
a sort of cave cut out of the lime-stone rock. And a stone 
lay on top of it. Je-sus said, Take ye a-way the stone. 

Mar-tha said, Lord, 
by this time he is not 
fit to be seen; for he 
hath been dead four 
days. 

Je-sus said to her, 
Did I not tell thee if 
thou didst believe thou 
shouldst see the glo-ry 
of God ? Then they 
took the stone from the 
door of the tomb. And 
Je-sus raised his eyes, 
and said, Fath-er, I 
thank thee that thou 
dost hear me. I knew 
that thou didst hear me 
at all times; but be- 
cause of the crowds 
that stand round I said 
it, that they might be- 
lieve that thou didst 
send me. And when 
he had said these words, he cried out with a loud voice, 
Laz-a-rus, come forth ! And he that was dead came forth, 
bound hand and foot with the grave clothes ; and his face 




JEW-ISH HIGH PRIEST. 



The High-Priest Tells that "Jesus Must Die, 313 

was hid with a piece of white cloth. Je-sus said, Loose 
him, and let him go. 

Then some of the Jews who came to the house of Ma- 
ry, and saw what Je-sus did, had faith in him. But the 
rest went a-way and told his foes what things Je-sus had 
done. Then the chief priests and men of the law, met, 
and said, What are we to do ? For this man does strange 
signs. If we let him a-lone all men will be-lieve in him, 
and our down-fall will be sure. 

One of them, named Ca-ia-phas, who was the high priest 
at that time, said to them, Ye do not know, or seem to 
think, that it might be well to put one man to death and so 
save our-selves. He was full of craft; and as all the high 
priests in those days could tell the things that would take 
place, he fore-told that Je-sus was to die for the Jews. And 
not for them a-lone, but that the whole world might be 
brought to God and known by a new name. This made 
the Jews hate Je-sus more and more, and from that day 
forth they laid their plans to seize him that they might put 
him to death. 

Je-sus then went a-way and made his home with the 
Twelve in a small town at the north-east of Je-ru-sa-lem. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE PASS-OVER FEAST. BLIND BAR-TI-ME-US. ZAC-CHE-US 

CLIMBS A TREE. — -JE-SUS ON THE WAY TO JE-RU- 
SA-LEM. THE FEAST AT BETH-A-NY. 

It was now the spring of the year, and near the time 
of the full moon. And one of the three great feasts of the 
Jews was close at hand. This feast was called the Feast of 
the Pass-o-ver, and it had been kept since the days of Mo- 
ses, that the Jews might bear in mind all that they owed to 
God, and how he led them out of the land of E-gypt. It 
was the law that each male Jew should go to the house of 
the Lord, where the feast was kept up for eight days. In 
all that time they w r ere to eat no bread with yeast in it. 
They were to take a young lamb, and roast it whole, and 
this was to form the meal in each house on the eve of the 
feast. 

The Jews were strict to keep this first great feast, and 
for days and days the roads were filled with the crowds 
on their way to Je-ru-sa-lem. Je-sus, from the small town on 
the hill, could see the throng as it wound through the vale 
that lay at his feet. The time had come for him to leave 
this place, and to go forth to meet his fate; and with bowed 
head he set out for the high road that led to Je-ru-sa-lem. 

On the way he called the Twelve to him, and said, We 
now go up to Je-ru-sa-lem, and there by fraud I shall be led 

3H 



3i6 



The Pass-o-ve?' Feast. 



to the chief priests and scribes, and they shall doom me to 
death. And they shall give me up to the mob, who will 
mock, and scourge, and spit at me. And they will hang 
me on the cross, but in three days I will rise from the dead. 
Then the moth-er of James and John came with her two 




3*r 



ON THE WAY TO JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



sons and bowed down at the feet of Je-sus, as those were 
wont to do who had some-thing to ask of a king. Jesus said 
to her, What dost thou wish? She said, That these my 
two sons may sit one on thy right hand, and one on thy left 
hand in thy king-dom. 



The Pass-o-ver Feast, 



317 



Je-sus said to James and John, Ye know not what ye 
ask. Can ye drink of the cup that I am to drink? They 
said to him, We can. Then said Jesus, My cup ye shall 
drink — that is, he meant they should share in his pains and 
woes — but to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is 
not mine to give, but is as God wills. 




JE-RU-SA-LEM FROM THE SOUTH. 



When the Ten heard of it, they were not at all pleased 
with the two men who had shown them-selves so full of 
pride as to think of crowns at this time. But Je-sus called 
them un-to him and taught them that those who would be 
great in the next life, must be as ser-vants in this life. He 



318 Blind Bar-ti-me-us. 

who would take high rank there, must give up all thought 
of self, and serve in a low rank here. They were to do as 
he had done. For he had not come to be served by them, 
but had spent his life for the good of men, and would die 
that they might be set free from their guilt and sin. In 
times of war when the slaves of a king were seized by his 
foe, the king could not get them back with-out he paid a 
price for them. This price is called a ran-som. To ran- 
som is to set free. Je-sus, by his death, sets us free from 
the chains of sin. 

As they drew near Jer-i-cho the crowd grew more and 
more dense. Here and there by the way-side sat the blind 
men, who could not work, and had to beg. One of these 
was named Bar-ti-me-us, who may have heard of Je-sus, 
and of the strange things he had done. And when he 
heard the noise of the crowd, and was told that it was 
Je-sus who had passed by, he cried out for Je-sus to help 
him. Those near him told him to be still, but he cried out 
the more, and begged Jesus to help him. 

Then Je-sus stood still, and said, Call ye him. And 
they said to the blind man, Rise, be of good cheer, he calls 
thee. And the blind man sprang up and came to Je-sus. 
Je-sus said to him, What wilt thou that I should do to 
thee? And the blind man said, Master, that I may have 
my sight. Je-sus said to him, Go thy way; thy faith hath 
made thee whole. And at once his sight came to him, and 
he joined the crowd that went with Je-sus. And he, and 
all those who saw what had been done, gave thanks and 
praise to God. 

Jer-i-cho was one of the towns where the tax was paid, 



Blind Bar-ti-me-us. 



3*9 



and a man named Zac-che-us lived there. He was paid to 
take the toll, and to see that the trade in gums and spice 
was well kept up. He was a rich man, and a Jew, and 




SUP-POSED SITE OF JER-I-CHO. 



he mass of the Jews thought that he did not make his 
wealth by fair means. This man had heard of Je-sus, and 
had a strong wish to see what kind of a man he was. But 



320 



Zac-che-us Climbs a Tree. 



he was so' short, that though he went out with the crowd, 
he could not catch a glimpse of him. So he ran far out 
on the road, and climbed up in-to a sort of wild fig-tree to 
see Je-sus; for he was to pass that way. 

When Je-sus came to the place he looked up, and said 
to him, Zac-che-us, make haste, and come down ; for to-day 
I must stop at thy house. And he made haste, and came 




MOUNT AT JER-I-CHO. 



down, and led the way to his house, with joy in his heart 
that Je-sus was to be his guest. 

The crowd of Jews, most of whom were priests, raised 
a great hue and cry, and said, He has gone to lodge with 
a man that is a sin-ner! For they looked on Zac-che-us 
with scorn. But he stood out in their midst, and said to 
the Lord, with whom he wished to stand well, The half of 
my goods, Lord, I give to the poor; and if there is a man 




ZAC-CHE-US CALLED BY CHRIST, 



322 



Zac-che-us Climbs a Tree. 



whom I have robbed, and charged him more than he ought 
to have paid, I will give him back four times what he lost. 
This was proof that he would give up all that he loved 
best, for the sake of Him who had come to be his guest. 
And Je-sus said that he and his house should be saved. 




SQUARE RUINS AT JER-I-CHO. 



For he had owned that he was one of the lost sheep to 
whom the Lord was sent, 

While in the house of Zac-che-us, Je-sus spoke a par-a- 
ble, be-cause it was thought that as he was near Je-ru-sa- 



Zac-che-us Climbs a Tree. 323 

lem the king-dom he had told of must be close at hand. He 
said, A man of high rank went in-to a far off land to be 
crowned king, and when this was done he would come 
back. And he called ten ser-vants of his and gave to them 
ten pounds to trade with till he came back. But those 
who lived in the same town with this man had no love for 
him, and made it known that they did not wish him to be 
their king. And when he came back he called the ser- 
vants to him that he might know how they had used the 
wealth he had left with them. 

The first came and said, Lord, with thy pound I have- 
made ten pounds more. And he said to him, Well done, 
thou good ser-vant; be-cause thou didst well with a small 
sum, thou shalt rule o-ver ten large towns. 

Then the next one came and said, Lord, with thy one 
pound I have made five pounds. And he said to him, Thou 
shalt rule o-ver five towns. Then the third one came, and 
said, Lord, here is thy pound which I kept laid up in a 
cloth. For I feared thee, be-cause thou art a hard man, 
and dost take up what thou hast not laid down, and dost 
reap where thou hast not sown. 

The mas-ter said to him, Out of thine own mouth will 
I judge thee, thou wick-ed ser-vant. Thou didst know I 
was a hard man, who took up what I laid not down, and 
reaped what I did not sow. Then why didst thou not put 
what I gave thee in the bank, that when I came back I 
might have had it with the sum it would have gained ? And 
he said to those that stood by, Take from him the one 
pound, and give it to him that hath the ten pounds. For 
I say to you that he who hath shall have more ; and he that 



324 ye-sus on the Way to Je-ru-sa-lem. 

hath not much, shall lose that which he hath. And those 
who are my foes, and who do not wish me to reign o-ver 
them, bring them here, and put them to death. 

The king meant Je-sus, who was then on his way to a 
far off land, and would come back in due time. All men 
were his ser-vants, placed here to do his will. The pounds 
he left with them was the gift of faith. They were to be- 
lieve in Je-sus, and to serve him well, so that when he came 
back he would find that they had grown in grace, and were 
far more Christ-like than when he left. 

Each one should be a king — for he would rule him-self. 
But the one who had hid his gift, who had done nought to 
spread the name and fame of his king, or to gain strength 
for his cause, should lose the chance of gain he had, and 
be poor all the rest af his days. The foes of Christ — those 
who did not wish him to be their king — would meet a sad 
fate. 

Je-sus let these words sink in-to their hearts, and went 
out of the house, and up the rise of ground that led to Je- 
ru-sa-lem. He was at the head of a. great crowd, some of 
whom gazed at him with a look of awe, for they had seen 
his works and heard his words, and knew not what to think 
of him. 

He did not mean to go to Je-ru-sa-lem at this time, 
for the feast was yet six days off and he had need to rest. 
So as he drew near Beth-a-ny he left the crowd, and with 
the Twelve went to the house of his friends, which they 
reached at sun-down. 

While Je-sus was at Beth-a-ny they made a feast for him, 
and it was a feast of joy; for Je-sus was their guest. 



The Feast at Beth-a-ny. 



32.5 



Mar-tha served, and Laz-a-rus — whom Je-sus had raised 
from the dead — sat at meat with him. And there were 
those there, too, whom Je-sus had healed. 

Ma-ry had some oil which had cost a great deal. And 
she took a flask of this oil and poured it on the feet of Je- 
sus, and she wiped his feet with the hair of her head. So 




V\&V.^^ 






ON THE ROAD IO BETH-A-NY. 



much of the oil did she use that the whole house was 
filled with the sweet smell. 

Ju-das, one of the Twelve, who would soon give Je-sus 
in-to the hands of his foes, spoke up and said, Why this 
waste ? Why was not this oil sold ? for the price it brought 



326 The Feast at Beth-a-ny. 

would have done much good to the poor. This he said, 
not that he cared much for the poor, but be-cause he was a 
thief, and bore with him the bag, or box, in which the 
mon-ey was put. The sale of the oil would bring but ten 
pounds at the most, but such was his greed of gold that he 
could not bear to have this sum slip through his hands. 

Je-sus said, Let her a-lone, for she has wrought a good 
work up-on me, and for the time of my death has she kept 
this. The poor ye have with you at all times ; but me ye 
have not with you. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

JE-SUS LEAVES BETH-A-NY. SONGS OF PRAISE AND PALMS 

OF JOY. HE SPEAKS IN THE TEM-PLE. A VOICE FROM 

ON HIGH. THE FIG TREE THAT BORE NO FRUIT. 

There were three roads that led from the town of 
Beth-a-ny up to the Mount of Ol-ives, from which a fine 
view could be had of the large town of Je-ru-sa-lem, with 
all its parks, ponds and tombs, its domes, and spires, and 
well-built forts, and all the signs of wealth out-spread. Two 
of these roads were paths, rough and hard to the feet, so 
Je-sus chose the main road, and led the way for those who 
went with him. As they drew near to Beth-page Je-sus 
called two of the Twelve and said to them, Go your way 
to the small town close at hand, and there you shall find 
an ass tied, with a colt near her. Loose the colt and bring 
him here. And if the man who owns him asks why you 
loose him, say, The Lord has need of him. 



yes us Leaves Beth-a-ny. 



327 



The two men went off and found all things as Je-sus 
had said. There was the ass, and near her the young colt 
which had not yet been used. Both were tied at the back 
of the house, and the men went to them to do as they were 
told. While they were at work, the man of the house came 
up to them and said, Why loose ye the colt? They said, 




VIEW IN JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



The Lord has need of him. And they brought him to 
je-sus and threw their robes on the colt, and set Je-sus on 
his back. 

In the East the horse was made use of when men went 
out^ to war. But when they went to trade, or to call on 
their friends, they rode on the mule or ass, and this was the 



328 



Jesus Leaves Beth-a-ny. 



sign that they went out for peace and not for war. The ass 
and the mule were beasts for the poor, for it did not cost 
much to keep them, and great were the loads they could 
bear. Je-sus came as a poor man, and not as a rich one; 




and rode on an ass, 
and not on a war- 
horse, that all might 
know that he brought 
peace and good-will 
to men. 

As he went the 
crowd with him threw 
their robes in his way, and cut down the boughs of the 
palm and fig-trees to strew in the path, as they would have 
done to one of the kings of earth, and they cried out, 
Blest be the king that comes in the name of the Lord! 



BETH-PAGE. 



Songs of Praise, and Palms of "Joy. 



329 



Ho-san-na to the most High ! The day on which this 
scene took place is now known as Palm Sun-day; and the 







^ 






WHERE BETH-PAGE ONCE STOOD. 



palm is a sign of praise, or of work well done. And as 
the crowd went on they spoke of the great things that Je- 



33o 



Jesus Leaves Beth-a-ny. 



sus had done, and more than all that he had raised Laz-a- 
rus from the dead. For this was fresh in their minds. 

They came to a turn of the road that brought them to 
the brow of the hill — the Mount of Ol-ives — from whence 
they could look off on the far-famed town, that shone in a 
blaze of white and gold. All these signs of wealth were 

spread out to the 
gaze, and when Je- 
sus saw what Je-ru- 
\^\ sa-lem was, and 
thought of what she 
might be, great sobs 
i.\ shook his frame and 
if; j, he gave way to tears. 
Fi He had tried to save 
the Jews, but they 
would not come to 
him. But his tears 
were not for the J ews 
a-lone, but for all 
those who turn from 
him and will not be 
saved. The shrines 
they set up, and the 
gods they bow down to will be all swept a-way and what 
then will they have left to cling to ? If God is in the house, 
the house will stand ; which means that if the heart — which 
is the true church of God — is prompt to do His will, firm 
in its love for Christ and its trust in Him, it will not sink 
though the skies should fall, but will rise and shine in white 
and gold that the years shall not dim. 




EAST-ERN ASS-ES. 




EN-TRY IN-TO JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



332 



Songs of Praise and Palms of Joy. 



As soon as it was known that Je-sus was on his way to 
the feast, crowds went out of Je-ru-sa-lem to meet him. 
Some joined in the shouts, and songs of praise, which when 




the scribes heard they 
called on Je-sus to put 
a stop to. But he said, 
If these shall hold their 
peace, the stones them- 
selves shall cry out. As 
they came in-to Je-ru-sa-lem there was a great stir, and 
some asked, Who is this ? as if they said, what has he done? 
What does all this fuss mean ? and the crowd, said, This 
is the proph-et, Je-sus, from Naz-a-reth of Gal-i-lee. 



JE-RU-SA-LEM FROM MOUNT OF OL-IVES. 



334 He Speaks in the Tem-ple, 

Je-sus went at once to to the Tem-ple of God, and 
found that men had brought their wares in-side, and bought 
and sold their ox-en, sheep, and doves, as they had done 
three years be-fore. Once more he drove them out. He 
could not teach the pure word of God in such a foul place, 
where the clink of the gold could be heard a-bove the sound 
of his voice. And he said to those who had sinned thus, 
It is set down in the Word of God — My house shall be a 
house of prayer, but ye have made it a den of thieves. 
And the blind and the lame came to him and he healed 
them all ; and great was the throng that drew round him 
to hear the words that fell from his lips. 

JL 

The boys in the Tem-ple cried out Ho-san-na! Ho- 
san-na! for so great was their joy, they could not cease their 
glad songs of praise. 

When the chief priests and scribes saw and heard these 
things they ground their teeth with rage. They longed to 
lay hands on him, but dared not touch him, for the whole 
crowd seemed to be on his side. And they said to Je-sus, 
when the boys sang the glad song of praise, Dost thou 
hear what these say? Je-sus said, Yes; have ye not read 
that out of the mouth of babes and suck-lings hast thou 
brought forth praise. This was in the Psalms, and if the 
scribes and chief priests were as well read as they claimed 
to be they would know the rest of the verse, and see how 
the things that Da-vid fore-told had all come to pass. 
But these men were blind; they would not see. 

There were some Greeks that had come up to the feast, 
and these came to Phil-ip and said, Sir, we would see 
Je-sus. And when word was brought to Je-sus he said, 



He Speaks in the Tem-ftle. 



335 



The hour is come, that the Son of Man shall be raised up 
on high. If a grain of wheat falls not in the ground and 
dies, it comes to nought; but if it does, it will bring forth 
much fruit. He that lives for him-self shall lose the things 
he most loves ; and he that gives up all thoughts of self, 




SIR, WE WOULD SEE JE-SUS. 



and strives to keep God's laws and to do as Christ has 
taught, shall win the love of men and of an-gels. If a man 
serve me let him walk in my foot-steps; and where I am, 
there shall those be who love and serve me, and they shall 
share my home on high where God is. 



336 A Voice From on High. 

He had to do God's will; why should not they? And 
he said to them, How shall I find words to speak the 
thoughts that fill my heart? Shall I say, Fath-er save me 
from this hour, when from this cause came I to this hour? 
Fath-er, thy will be done; and to thy name be all the praise! 

Then there came a voice out of the skies, so loud and 
strong that those who heard it were awe-struck. It did 
not sound the same to all, but the whole crowd felt that 
God was there. The voice said, I have done it in the past, 
and what is yet to be done will bring praise to my name. 

Je-sus said, Not for my sake has this voice come but 
for yours. Now has the time come to judge the world: 
now shall the Prince of this World be cast out. Sa-tan is 
called the Prince of this World ; he rules be-tween God and 
man, and tries to keep the two a-part. Je-sus the Prince of 
Peace, had fought with the Prince of this World, and won 
in the fight. And he said, I, if I be raised up on high out 
of the earth, will draw all men un-to me. This he said, 
to show forth what death he was to die. 

Some in the crowd of Jews, said, We have heard out of 
the law that the Christ should have a long reign on the 
earth. How then dost thou say, The Son of Man must 
be raised up on high? Who is this Son of Man? 

Je-sus said, that he might clear their doubts, Not long 
will the light be with you. Walk while the light yet shines 
in your midst, that ye be not caught in the dark : for he 
that walks in the dark knows not where he goes. Those 
who have faith in Christ walk in the light ; those who have 
doubts, or care not for him, walk in the dark, and know 
not where they will go. He is the lamp for their feet. 



A Voice From on High, 



337 



And Je-sus said, As ye have the light, be-lieve in the 
light, that ye may be the sons of light. But their eyes 
were blind, their minds were dull, and their hearts were 
hard. Some of those who heard Je-sus scarce knew what 
he meant ; and the few who did would not dare to let it be 
known that they thought he was the true Christ. They 




FIG-TREK. 



feared the Chief Priests and Scribes, and cared more to 
please men than they did to please God. 

No songs of praise were now in the air. The sun sank 
down in the west, and soon the last ray of day-light was 
hid in a veil of gloom. Je-sus knew it would not be safe 
for him to stay in Je-ru-sa-lem, so he stole out with the 



338 



The Fig Tree that Bore no Fruit, 



crowd that went through the gate and made his way to 
Beth-a-ny. Here, at some way-side inn, he and the Twelve 
spent the night, and the next morn went back to the town 
to take part in the great feast. 

On the way he felt the need of food, and when he saw 
a fig-tree by the w r ay-side, he came to it and found nought 




LOOK-ING DOWN ON BETH-A-NY. 



on it but leaves. The fig tree first sends forth its flow-ers ; 
then comes the fruit; and when the fruit is ripe the leaves 
form, and fill the boughs. 

When Je-sus came up to the tree and found such a fair 
show of leaves, and no figs, he said, no more shall fruit 
grow on thee. And the Twelve heard him. The fig tree 



The Fig Tree that Bore no Fruit. 339 

is a type of those who seem to be all right, but who bring 
forth no good fruit. They do not lead the right kind of 
lives. There is a blight up-on them : the blight of sin : and 
though they make a fair show to men, God knows their 
hearts, and will judge them. 

The next day when they passed by the place where the 
fig-tree had stood, they found it dried up from the roots. 
And the Twelve were awe-struck at the pow-er there was 
in Christ. Like most men, they thought more of the 
strange things he did than of the truth he taught ; and did 
not take in the fact that this was to warn them of the fate 
of those who led false lives, and made men think they were 
good by their out-side show. Je-sus had said, By their 
fruits — by the works they do — ye shall know if they be 
good or bad. When Je-sus looks for fruit, shall there be 
nought but leaves ? 

Je-sus came to the Tem-ple, and as he taught the crowd 
there the Chief Priests and Scribes drew near to him, and 
said, Tell us by what right you do these things ? and who 
gave you this right? Je-sus said, First tell me by whom 
John was bap-tized? was it of God, or by man? They spoke 
among them-selves, and said, If we say the bap-tism came 
from God, he will say, Why did you not be-lieve him ? But 
if we say, Of men, the crowd will stone us, for they are 
sure that John was sent from God. So, wise men as they 
were, they were forced to say to Je-sus, We can-not tell. 
Je-sus knew that they did not choose to tell, so he said to 
them, Nor can I tell you by what right I do these things. 

Then he spoke to the crowd in this way: A man set 
out plants for a vine-yard ; and built a wall round it ; and 



34° Par-a-ble of the Vine-yard. 

dug a pit for the wine-press. And he built a high place for 
the watch-men to guard it, and then he let it out to farm- 
ers and went to a far land to be gone a long time. 

When it was the time of the year for the grapes to be 
ripe, he sent some of his ser-vants to the farm-ers to get the 
fruit. And the farm-ers beat them, and stoned them, and 
one of them was killed. Then he sent out more ser-vants, 
and they were dealt with in the same way. 

Then the lord of the vine-yard said, What shall I do? 
I will send my own dear son, and they will look up to him, 
and do him no harm. But when the farm-ers saw the son, 
they said among them-selves, This is the heir; come, let 
us kill him, and keep all his wealth. And they took him, 
<and cast him forth out of the vine-yard, and slew him. 

When the lord of the vine-yard comes, what will he do 
to those men? He will put them to death, and will let out 
his vine-yard to men who will give him the fruits in their 
due time. Je-sus said to the Jews, Have ye not read that 
the stone which the build-ers threw out was made the chief 
cor-ner stone? So I say to you that God shall take His 
King-dom from you, and shall give it to those who will bring 
forth the fruits of it. And he who shall fall on this stone 
— those who seek to harm Christ — shall meet with pain 
and loss; but those on whom the stone shall fall — those 
who shall cast him out from their hearts when he is raised 
up on high — shall be ground to dust. 

When the Chief Priests and Scribes heard these words 
they knew that he spoke of them. And they would have 
seized him then and there, but for their fear of the crowd, 
so they left him and went their way. 



The Wed-ding Feast. 341 

But Je-sus still taught those who drew near to hear his 
words. And he said, A man that was a king made a 
great feast for his son, and sent forth his ser-vants to bid 
the guests come to the wed-ding. But they would not 
come. Then he sent forth more ser-vants, and said, Tell 
them the din-ner is laid out, the ox and the sheep are killed, 
and all things are made read-y ; and bid them come to the 
feast. 

But they made light of it, and went their ways, some to 
till their farms, and some to buy and sell ; and the rest laid 
hold of the ser-vants and ill-used them, and at last put them 
to death. 

The king was wroth and sent forth his armed men, who 
put to death those whose crimes were so great, and burned 
up the town in which they dwelt. 

Then said be to his ser-vants, Go ye out in-to the high- 
ways — where the streets meet — and bring in all those ye 
find there. So those ser-vants went out in-to the high-ways, 
and brought in all they found there, the bad and the good, 
and the wed-ding was filled with guests. 

When the king came in to look at the guests, he saw 
there a man who had not on a wed-ding robe. It was his 
own fault that he did not have one. They were there for 
all ; a gift from the king that gave the feast. But it pleased 
this man to wear his own robe. And the king said to him, 
Friend how didst thou dare to come in here with-out a 
wed-ding robe? The man had not a word to say. He was 
dumb with shame. 

Then the king said to those who stood in wait to do his 
will, Bind him hand and foot, and cast him out in-to the 
dark with those who weep and wail. 




STREET IN JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



The Wed-dino- Feast. 



343 



The king means God. The feast is when Christ and 
his church are one. The first ser-vants are those who first 
went out to preach the good news. They were ill-used, 




FRIEND, HOW DIDST THOU COME IN WITH-OUT A WED-DING ROBE? 

were struck down with hard blows, and one of them — 
John the Baptist — was put to death. Christ spoke to the 
Jews, and it was them that God first called. But they 



344 ^he Wed-ding Feast. 

would not come in. So God the great King of Kings, 
sent out to the high-ways and by-ways, and the bad and 
good were brought in. But they could not take part in 
the feast — that is, they could not share in the joys of 
heav-en — till they had cast out of their hearts all love of self, 
and put on the pure white robe which the King will give 
to all those who ask for it. 

Men let in the bad and the good. They can-not read 
their hearts. But when the King comes he will judge them 
all, and will cast out those that have not on the robe they 
ought to wear. Christ Je-sus is that robe. We are to put 
him on so that he hides all the old rags of sin, and pride, 
and love of self or the world ; and what does the new dress 
mean but a new heart? "with-out which no man can see the 
Lord." 



CHAPTER XX. 

LAST DAYS. WHAT THE SIGN SHALL BE. THE TEN VIR- 
GINS. THE TEN TAL-ENTS. 

It was now near the close of this sad week — the last 
that Je-sus was to spend on earth. He rose at day-break, 
and went with the Twelve down the slope of the hill, and 
through one of the gates that led in-to the town. 

The crowd soon drew round Je-sus as he sat down in 
the courts of the Tem-ple, and the Chief Priests and 
Scribes sought to snare him in his speech. They meant to 
make him say things that would prove that he was a fraud, 
and give them the right to put him out of the way. 



Last Days. **, 

So they sent out spies, who came to Je-sus and said, 
Mas-ter we know that thou art true, and dost teach the 
way of God in truth, with-out fear of what men may do or 
say. Tell us, then, what dost thou think? Is it right, by 
the law of the Jews, to pay a tax to Cse-sar, or not? 

Je-sus, who read their hearts, said, Why tempt ye me 







■ - -Uiy:'i ; ! '*;, ,„ i 



Suifip 




DAY-BRKAK AT JE-RU-SA-LEM. 



with your false way? Show me the coin with which the tax 
is paid. And they brought it to him. And he said to 
them, Whose face is this with the date it bears? They say 
un-to him, Cae-sar's. Then said he, Give back to Cae-sar 
the things that are Cse-sar's; and to God the things that 
are God's. It is not our gold that God wants ; but we are 




GOLD-EN GATE. 



Last Days. 



347 



to pay our debts to him with love. When the spies heard 
these words, in which there was nought they could find 
fault with, they left him, and went on their way. 




On that day there came 
to Je-sus the Sad-du-cees, 
who were the worst foes he 
had while on earth. They 
held strange views of their 
own, and did not be-lieve in 
the Word of God, or in an-gels. They said that men had 
no souls, and did not be-lieve that we lived on, in a home 
on high, when we were laid in our graves. 



WHOSE FACE IS ON THE COIN? 



348 Last Days. 

These men came to Je-sus, and spoke to him with a 
sneer, and asked him all sorts of things that they might 
mock at his words. But he taught them in such a way, 
that they were forced to hide their heads with shame. He 
threw new light on the law, which so pleased the Scribes 
that they cried out, Mas-ter, thou hast said well! And one 
of these asked Je-sus which, in the eyes of the law, is the 
great com-mand-ment? He said to him, Thou shalt love 
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy mind. 
This is the first and great com-mand-ment. And the 
next is like un-to it : Thou shalt love thy neigh-bor as thy- 
self. The whole Word of God rests on these two com- 
mand-ments, and can be proved by the laws of Mo-ses, 
and by those who fore-told of Christ. 

The Scribes moved from the place; they could think of 
no more to ask; but Je-sus had some-what to say to them. 
He asked them, What think ye of the Christ? whose Son 
is he? They say unto him, The son of Da-vid. He saith 
to them, How then doth Da-vid call him Lord, and say, 
The Lord said un-to my Lord, sit thou on my right hand, 
till I put thy foes un-der thy feet. If Da-vid calls him 
Lord, how is he his son? And none of them had a word to 
say, nor durst they from that day forth seek to snarl him up 
in his talk. 

As the Chief Priests and Scribes left the place, Je-sus 
spoke to the crowd, and to the Twelve that stood near him. 
The Chief Priests and the Scribes, he said, sit in Mo-ses' 
seat. All that they bid you do, out of the Book of the 
Law, that give heed to and do. But do not ye as they do. 
For they say, and do not. They bind loads on men's 



What the Sign Shall Be. 349 

backs that are hard to be borne ; but they them-selves do 
not touch them. All their works they do to be seen of men. 
Small slips of parch-ment — a piece of sheep skin dried and 
made smooth, and on which men wrote in those days — 
were put in a case and worn on the left arm or fore-head 
in time of prayer. These slips had on them a few words 
of the law, and were thought by some to be a guard, or 
charm. The Phar-i-sees, who did all for show, and 
thought that no men were as good as they were, wore the 
badge at all hours of the day. 

Je-sus said, They made broad these signs, which 
were worn so that all men could see them ; and wide was 
the hem of the robe they wore out-side. The Jews had 
been taught how to dress. The fringe was to be of just such 
a length; and the blue silk that bound it of just such a 
width. But this did not suit these men, who were like 
those who have large prayer-books, and the Word of God 
bound in gilt, and seem to the world to be good men, while 
yet they have no love of Christ in their hearts. 

They love the chief place at feasts, and the chief seats 
in the church. And they like men to greet them on the 
streets, and call them mas-ter. But be ye not called, 
mas-ter — do not have this kind of pride — for one is your 
Mas-ter, and that is Christ. He that is the great one in 
your midst shall be your ser-vant. He that is proud shall 
be brought low; and he that is like a child, and thinks not 
much of him-self, shall be raised to a high place. 

But woe to you, said Je-sus, Who are not what you 
seem to be ! For ye shut the door of heav-en in the face of 
men. Ye go not in your-selves, nor let those go in who 



350 What the Sign Shall Be. 

would. Christ calls him-self the Door, and the Way, for 
by him we pass through the veil that lies be-tween this 
world and the next. He said they were blind guides who 
led men out of the right path. They took great pains to 
cleanse the out-side of the cup and the dish, but their hearts 
were full of greed and love of self. They serve me with 
their lips but their hearts are far from me. Cleanse the in- 
side of the cup and dish — cleanse the heart — so that the 
life may be clean, and free from stain. 

Woe to you who build tombs for those who fore-told 
that Christ should come, and say, If we had lived in those 
days we would not have put such men to death. But ye 
prove by your own deeds that ye are the sons of those who 
stoned the proph-ets. And he told them that they should 
do the same in their day. 

With a wail of grief, he cried out, O Je-ru-sa-lem, Je- 
ru-sa-lem, thou who dost kill the proph-ets and stone those 
which are sent to thee, how oft would I have drawn thy 
chil-dren to me as a hen draws her chick-ens un-der her 
wings, where they are safe from harm, but ye would not! 
It was left to your own free-will, and ye would not be 
saved. 

And he spoke of the sad fate in store for her and for all 
those who dwelt within her walls. They should feel the 
weight of God's hand up-on them, but all hope should not 
be lost. 

They might yet be saved when they should own Je-sus 
as their Lord, whom now they were too blind to see. 

Je-sus did not leave the Tem-ple at once, but sat down 
in the court of the wom-en, which was near the place where 




THE WIDOW'S MITE. 



352 What the Sign Shall Be, 

the great chests stood. There were thir-teen of these great 
brass chests with wide mouths in-to which the gifts were 
throw r n: what each one paid for the care of God's house. 
Some as they went by, threw in their coins so that they 
would make a great noise, and Je-sus watched them, and 
saw that the rich cast in large sums. And there came a 
poor wid-ow a wom-an whose hus-band was dead and she 
cast in two mites. It would take four of these mites to 
make one cent, so the sum was not a large one; but it was 
all she had, and she was glad to give it. Je-sus called the 
Twelve to him, and said to them, I say to you this poor 
wid-ow has cast in more than all the rest. For they cast 
in of their wealth, and did not miss it, and could have 
spared much more. But she, poor and in need, did cast 
in all she had ; and the gift was worth more to God, 
be-cause it cost more. 

Then Je-sus left that part of the Tem-ple which was 
set a-part for the use of the Jews, and he looked round with 
a sad gaze. And the Twelve drew near to him to show 
him the large stones of great size with which the walls were 
built. 

Je-sus said to them, As for these things that ye see, 
there will come a day when all these stones shall be thrown 
down. As they sat down on the Mount of Ol-ives, Pe-ter, 
James, John, and An-drew came near to Je-sus, and said 
to him, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall 
be the sign of the end of the world? 

Je-sus said, See that you are not led off by false guides, 
who come in my name, and say, I am the Christ. Ye 
shall hear of wars, and hints of wars, but do not fear; these 
things must take place, but the end is not yet. 



What the Sign Shall Be. 



353 



And there shall be a great lack of food, and earth- 
quakes here and there. And men shall seize you, and ill- 
use you, and put you to death ; and they shall hate you for 
my name's sake. And be-cause of the sin that is in the 
land, those who once loved the name of Christ, and had 
warm hearts, will grow cold and turn from me. But he 




RU-INS OF AN ARCH, BUILT OF GREAT STONES. 



whose love shall hold out to the end, the same shall be 
saved. And he told them more of the strange things 
they might look for, ere the Last Great Day. They were 
not to seek to know what could not be known, but to watch 
and pray, and wait God's time 



354 The Ten Vir-gins. 

Je-sus said to the Twelve, When the fig tree is yet 
young and it puts forth leaves, ye know that sum-mer is 
near. So shall ye, when ye see all these things, know that 
Christ is at your doors. The earth and the skies shall 
pass a- way, but my word shall not pass a-way. But of that 
day and hour, knows no one, not even the an-gels, nor the 
Son of God. But as it was in the days of No-ah, so shall 
it be when Christ comes. Watch then ; for ye know not 
what hour your Lord comes. If the mas-ter of the house 
had known at what hour the thief would come, he would 
have kept watch, and would not have let him break in-to 
his house. Be ye on the watch — lead good and pure lives, 
so that ye will be fit to dwell in the home on high — for in 
such an hour that ye think not the Son of Man comes. 

Then Je-sus spoke the par-a-ble of the Ten Vir-gins. 
A vir-gin is a young girl, who has not wed. 

These ten were friends of the bride, and they took their 
lamps and went out to meet the bride-groom. And five 
of them were wise, and five were fool-ish. The fool-ish, 
when they took their lamps, took no oil with them. But 
the wise took oil with them to fill their lamps, in case the 
light went out. 

The bride-groom was late ; and though they kept watch 
for a while, and tried hard to keep a-wake, they gave 
up at last, and one by one dropped off to sleep. But at 
mid-night the cry was heard, Lo the bride-groom! come 
ye forth and meet him ! Then all the ten vir-gins rose up 
to trim their lamps. And the fool-ish said to the wise, 
Give us of your oil, or our lamps will go out. But the 
wise said, Not so; for there may be no more than we shall 
need, Go ye to those that sell, and buy for your-selves. 



The Ten Vir-gins* 



355 



While the five went off at that late hour to buy oil, the 
bride-groom came ; and the five whose lamps were trimmed 
and bright went with him in-to the feast. And the door 
was shut. 

When those who had gone off to buy oil, came back 
from their search, they found the door closed, and they 
cried out, Lord, Lord, let us in ! let us in ! But he said, I 
know you not. 

The bride-groom came from a far-off land, and the vir- 
gins went out to meet him and bring him to the house of 
the bride. Christ is the bride- 
groom, the bride is the Church, 
and the vir-gins those who make 
up the Church of God. The lamp 
means the heart; the oil is the 
grace of God which keeps the flame 
bright. The grace of God, is the 
faith, hope, joy, strength, peace, and 
all that fills the soul of those who 
trust in Him, and seek to do His 
will. 

It is of no use to trim the wicks — to make a show of 
love to Christ — if there is no oil in our lamps. Those who 
went out to buy oil, may have tried hard, but the hour was 
late, and when they came back the door was closed, and 
for that time they were shut out from the feast. This Je^ 
sus told them to warn them not to put off, but to give their 
hearts to Christ at once, and to turn from their sins. 

Then Je-sus said, The King-dom of God, the hour 
when Christ comes, is like a man who, ere he set out for 




LORD, LET US IN ! LET US In! 



356 The Ten Tal-ents, 

a far off land, called his ser-vants to him and gave his 
goods in-to their hands. To one he gave five tal-ents, to 
the next one, two; and to a third, one. A tal-ent meant in 
those days a large sum of wealth ; but we call tal-ents the 
gifts of God, the skill each one has, and which God means 
us to use for His praise. Not all have the same gifts; 
some have more than the rest ; but there is no one who can- 
not do some-thing if he will. 

When the rich man had thus set a-part his great wealth, 
he went to the far off land. Then he who had the five tal- 
ents bought and sold in such a way that he gained five 
more tal-ents. And he that had two, did the same, so that 
he gained two more. But he that had but one, went off 
and dug a hole in the earth and hid the tal-ent the lord 
gave him. 

When the lord of those ser-vants came back, he called 
them up to tell how they had made use of the wealth left in 
their hands. He that had five tal-ents came, and said, 
Lord, thou didst give me five tal-ents ; lo, here are five more 
I have gained for thee. 

His lord said to him, Well done, good and faith-ful 
ser-vant; thou wast faith-ful o-ver a few things, I will set 
thee to rule o-ver ma-ny things. Come in-to the joy of thy 
lord! He that had two tal-ents came and said, Lord, thou 
didst give me two tal-ents ; and lo, here are two more tal- 
ents I have gained. 

His lord said to him, Well done, good and faith-ful 
ser-vant. Thou wast faith-ful o-ver a few things, I will set 
thee to rule o-ver ma-ny things. Come in-to the joy of thy 
lord! 



The Ten Tal-ents. 357 

Then he who had but the one tal-ent, came and said, 
Lord, I knew that thou art a hard man, and didst reap 
where thou didst not sow, and didst take up what thou 
hadst not laid down. And I was a-fraid, and went and 
hid thy tal-ent in the earth: lo, here thou hast thine own. 
But his lord said to him, Thou wick-ed ser-vant ; be-cause 
thou didst know that I reap where I sowed not, and take 
up what I laid not down, thou shouldst have put out my 
mo-ney so that it would have brought me in more than 
just what I gave thee. Take ye the tal-ent a-way from him, 
and give it to him which hath ten tal-ents. For he that 
hath — he that makes a good use of what he hath — shall 
have more and more. But from him that hath not shall 
be ta-ken a-way e-ven that which he hath. He who does 
not serve God well with the gift he has — small though it 
be— shall lose that, and all that he might have gained by 
it. And the doom of the lost ones shall be his if he does 
not turn from his sins, and pay to God the debt he owes. 

Then Je-sus told how it should be when he sat on the 
throne on high, with all the an-gels round him. Be-fore 
him men shall come from all the ends of the earth, and they 
shall be like a great flock of sheep and goats : some mild 
and tame, and the rest wild and self-willed. And he shall 
set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on his left. 
Then shall the King say to those on his right hand, Come, 
ye whom. God has blest, come to the place set a-part for 
you since the world was made. For I was in need of food, 
and ye gave me to eat ; I was a-thirst and ye gave me drink. 
I was in a strange land and ye took me to your homes ; I 
was poor, and ye clothed me; sick, and ye took care of me. 



358 The Ten Tal-ents. 

I was shut up in a cell, and ye came to cheer me. Then 
shall the blest ones say, Lord, when saw we thee in need of 
food, and fed thee ? or a-thirst, and gave thee drink ? And 
when saw we thee like one in a strange land and took thee 
to our homes? or in need of clothes, and clothed thee? 
And when saw we thee sick, or in a pris-on cell, and came 
to nurse and to cheer thee ? 

And the King shall say to them, In as much as ye did 
it to one of the least of these who bear my name ye have 
done it to me. Real faith in Christ shows it-self in all our 
acts. The more we love him, the more good we will want 
to do. 

Then the King shall say to those on his left hand, Go 
from me, ye whom God has cursed; go to the fire that 
burns and does not go out, which is the home of the dev-il 
and his an-gels. For I was hun-gry, and ye gave me no 
meat; I was thirst-y, and ye gave me no drink; I was in 
need of friends, and ye took me not in-to your homes; in 
rags, and ye clothed me not ; sick, and in pris-on, and ye 
came not near me. 

Then shall they say to him, Lord, when saw we thee 
hun-gry, or a-thirst, or in need of friends, or clothes; or 
sick, or in a pris-on cell, and did not do for thee? Then 
shall he say to them, In as much as ye did it not to one of 
these who bear my name, ye did it not to me. And these — 
the bad — shall go where grief and tears shall have no end: 
but the good shall live where there is no end of joy. If we 
treat the friends of Christ ill, we treat Him ill. We should 
be good and kind to all. 

We are not to pick and choose, and to say, "I will do 



The Ten Tal-ents, 



359 



thus and so," but are to fit our-selves for the Lord's work, 
and to go where He sends us. If we set out to do His work 
in His way, we will find all the help we need, and He will 
give us strength to do more than we planned. At first we 
may not like the work we have to do, but if we pray to Je- 
sus and lean up-on him, he will teach us to love the work; 
and tasks that seem hard and not to our taste, will seem 
light and sweet be-cause He is with us. "He guides our 
feet, He guards our way." 

Then Je-sus said to the Twelve, Ye know that in two 
days the feast of the pass-o-ver will take place, and the Son 
of Man will be given in-to the hands of his foes to be hung 
up-on the cross. And now, as the sun had set, Je-sus rose 
from his seat on the Mount of Ol-ives, and went out on 
the road to Beth-a-ny. It was for the last time! He knew 
it, and was calm ! 



CHAPTER XXI. 

JU-DAS PLOTS TO SELL HIS LORD. THE LAST SUP-PER. 

JE-SUS WASH-ES THE DIS-CI-PLES FEET. 

LORD IS IT I. 

The last talks of Je-sus had caused a great stir a-mong 
Jews. And the Chief Priests and Scribes met at the house 
of Ca-ia-phas, the High Priest, to plan how they might take 
Je-sus by craft, and put him to death. But they said this 
could not be done the week of the feast, as most of the 
friends of Je-sus were from Gal-i-lee, and they were so 
bold and full of fight, that it might be the cause of much 
blood-shed. 



360 yu-das Plots to Sell His Lord. 

While the chief priests were in doubt as to the best 
move to make, there came a man to see them. This man 
was Ju-das, one of the Tw r elve. He had slunk a- way from 
the rest, as the shades of night came on, and made his way 
to the gate of the house where the high-priest lived. It 
was the rule that all the gates should be closed at sun-down, 
but when the feasts were held the rules were not so strict, 
as the crowd was great, and men had to go in and out at 
all hours. 

Ju-das told the guards who he was and why he had 
come, and they at once made it known to the chief priests 
and scribes then in the house. Ju-das was sent for at once. 
He was just the man they wished to see. He had lived 
with Je-sus, had seen and heard all that he had said and 
done, and from him they could gain help in their base plot. 

Ju-das said to them, What will you give me if I bring 
him in to your hands? They said they would give him 
thir-ty shek-els. A shek-el was a small sil-ver coin, worth 
not much more than fifty cents, so that for the small sum 
of fif-teen dol-lars, Ju-das sold his Lord. This was the 
price paid for a slave, and it shows what these Jews thought 
of Je-sus. 

Ju-das was fond of wealth. What would he not do to 
add to his store of gold? He must have thought that the 
chief priests would pay him a large sum, so fierce was their 
hate, so glad would they be to get rid of Je-sus. But the 
task would not be a hard one, and he should gain friends 
with the rich, and add to the wealth he could call his own. 
Poor Ju-das! blind to all else but his love for gold! He 
told the chief priests that he would bring Je-sus in-to their 




JU-DAS PLOTS WITH FOES OF JE-SUS. 



362 



Ju-das Plots to Sell His Lord. 



hands for the price named, and from that time he sought 
for a chance to do this thing. 

The first day oi the feast was now at hand, and on the 
eve of that day each Jew who kept house took a lamb to 
the priests, and slew it in front of the al-tar. This lamb 
was to be kept for four days be-fore it was killed. There 




BROOK KED-RON. 



was a long row of priests, and one of these caught the blood 
as it flowed from the slain lamb, and passed it on in a large 
sil-ver bowl to the next priest. He passed it to the next 
in line, and so on till it reached the foot of the al-tar, where 
it was poured out, and ran off in-to the brook Ked-ron. 



yu-das Plots to Sell His Lord. 363 

Now this was a sign, to make them think of the blood on 
the door-posts, when the Jews were slaves in the land of 
E-gypt. God had told Mo-ses that he would smite all the 
first-born in the land of E-gypt.. Rich and poor were to 
be served a-like, for their sins had been great. But each 
Jew who kept house was to kill a lamb on this dread night, 
and to mark the door-posts of his house with blood. The 
blood of the lamb was to save them. For when God saw 
the blood on the door-posts he would pass by that house, 
and the plague should not come nigh it when he smote the 
land of E-gypt. 

And they were to roast the flesh at night and eat it ; 
and what was left the next day was to be thrown in-to the 
fire and burned. In those days they were to eat this meal 
in haste, with their shoes on their feet, and their staff in hand, 
for their lot then was to move from place to place. The 
Jews changed this when they came to the land of Rest. 

When the day came on which the Jews were to eat the 
lamb — the first feast of the Pass-o-ver — Pe-ter and John 
came to Je-sus and asked him where they should eat this 
meal. Je-sus told them to go in-to the town, and they 
would meet a man with a jar of wa-ter. Go in-to the 
house where he goes, and say to the good man of the house, 
The Mas-ter saith, Where is the room, where I may come 
and eat the feast with my friends ? And he will show you 
a large room at the top of the house : there let the feast be 
spread. 

Pe-ter and John went forth, and found all as Je-sus 
had said to them. They met the man who had been to 
the well, and went with him to his house, and there a room 



364 The Last Sap-f>er. 

was shown them where Je-sus and the Twelve could eat. 

When it was night Je-sus and the Twelve went to this 
room where the feast was spread. 

Je-sus said he was glad to eat with them once more, for it 
was the last time they should meet in this way on earth. On 
the ta-ble were bowls of broth, some loaves of bread, and 
some red wine — the fruit of the vine. 

Je-sus took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and 
he gave to the Twelve and said, Take, eat; this is my 
bod-y, which is giv-en for you. This do in re-mem-brance 
of me. Think of me when ye eat it. And he took a cup 
of the wine, and gave thanks; and as he gave it to them, 
he said, Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood which is 
shed for you that your sins might be washed a-way. And 
they all drank of it. Je-sus said to them, I shall drink no 
more of this fruit of the vine till that day when I drink it 
with you, new, in my Fath-er's King-dom. 

There had been a strife a-mong the Twelve as to which 
should have the chief seat at the feast; next to Je-sus of 
course. Each guest lay at full length on a couch, and 
leaned on his left el-bow, so that the right hand was free. 
At the right of Je-sus, was John, the one whom he loved, 
and his head lay near the breast of his friend and Lord. It 
pained Je-sus to see this strife, and to think that those who 
had been with him for so long a time had not yet learned 
the truths he sought to teach. Their hearts were full of 
pride; they thought but of self. Je-sus told them that 
they should be kings — but not like the kings of earth. 
He that is great a-mong you let him be as a child; and he 
that is chief, as one that doth serve. And he said, I am 




THE 




5UP-PER. 



Jesus Wash-es the Dis-ci-ples* Feet. 



367 



in the midst of you as one that doth serve. Yet he was 
the Mas-ter of the feast and none so great as he. 

As he said this, Je-sus rose from the sup-per, and threw 
off his loose robes, and wrapped a tow-el round his waist. 
And he poured wa-ter in-to a bowl, and be-gan to wash the 




JE-SUS WASH-ES THE DIS-CI-PLES' FEET. 



feet of those who sat at the feast with him, and to wipe 
them dry with the tow-el at his waist. This was the work 
of slaves, and as no one had come to do this for them, all 
had gone in to the feast with the dust of the road still on 
their feet, for their walk had been a long one. 



368 ye-sus Wash-es the Dis-ci-ftles' Feet. 

The Twelve were struck dumb with awe and shame, 
and not a word was said till Je-sus came to where Pe-ter 
was. Pe-ter said to him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet? 
Je-sus said to him, What I do is not clear to thee now; but 
thou shalt know by and by. Pe-ter said to him, Thou 
shalt nev-er wash my feet. Je-sus said, If I wash thee not, 
thou hast no part with me. Pe-ter wished to be near his 
Lord, and if this act made him more to Him, it should be 
done. 

So Pe-ter said to him, Lord, wash my hands and my 
head as well as my feet. Je-sus said, He that is bathed, 
needs but to wash his feet, for the rest of him is clean; and 
ye are clean, but not all. For he knew who should give 
him up to his foes; and that was why he said with a sigh, 
Ye are not all clean. 

When Je-sus had washed the feet of the Twelve, he 
put on his loose robes, and took his place once more with 
them at the feast. And he said to them, Know ye what I 
have done to you? Ye call me Mas-ter and Lord, and ye 
say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Mas-ter 
have done this thing, can ye not do it? I have shown 
you that ye should do as I have done to you. They were 
to make them-selves as slaves, it so they might do good in 
the world, and by their kind deeds prove how great was 
their love. And once more Je-sus warned them that they 
were not to look for wealth, and. high rank, for the thrones 
that he spoke of were not of this world. 

Now John was at the right hand of Je-sus so that his 
head lay on the breast of the Lord. Ju-das was at the left 
hand of Je-sus, and the two dipped out of the same dish. 



Lord is it IP 369 

In some parts of the East knives and forks are not yet in 
use, but a piece of bread is held in the right hand and 
dipped in-to the sop, or broth, and then borne to the 
mouth. 

Je-sus was sad at heart. True, he was to part with 
these dear friends. It was the last night he was to spend 
with them on earth. But it caused him more grief to know 
that there was one near him, who should have been his 
friend and yet was one of his worst foes. The rest were 
true ; but this one was false, and Je-sus knew it. It grieved 
him, and it was with pain he said, One of you shall be- 
tray me — shall give me up to those who seek my life. 

The Twelve looked this way and that, and were in 
doubt as to what he meant. Each one asked, with pale 
cheeks, Lord is it I ? There was time yet for Ju-das to 
own his sin, and to beg his Lord to for-give him. One 
word would have done, or a touch, but not a sound broke 
the hush that filled the room. 

Then Pe-ter made a sign to John to ask who it was. 
John had but to lean back his head to look in the Mas-ter's 
face, and he said to him, Lord, who is it? Je-sus said, 
He it is to whom I shall give the sop, when I have dipped 
in the dish. And when he had dipped the bread in-to the 
sop, he gave it to Ju-das. And he said, The Son of Man 
must go the way marked out for him ; but woe to that man 
through whom the Son of Man is led in-to the hands of his 
foes! It were good for that man if he had nev-er been 
born. 

Ju-das said, Mas-ter, is it I ? No need for him to ask. 
Well he knew his guilt, Je-sus said to him, Thou hast 



Lord is it I f 371 

said it. As soon as Ju-das had ta-ken the sop he seemed 
to change from bad to worse. He could scarce wait for 
the time to come, so fierce was he to do this crime. When 
Sa-tan gets in-to the heart he drives out all that is good, 
and makes haste to bind us with his chains. 

Je-sus said in a low tone, What thou hast to do, do 
with more speed. Those who saw him speak to Ju-das 
and did not hear the words, thought that as he had the bag, 
Je-sus had told him to buy the things they would need for 
the feast, or to give some-thing to the poor. For Ju-das 
rose at once, and left the room. 



CHAPTER XXII. 

WITH JE-SUS IN THE UP-PER ROOM. 

Ju-das had gone out, and Je-sus was now with those 
whom he loved, and who loved him. There was no one 
near to cause a pang of grief, and joy came back, and all 
was light and peace. With Ju-das, the last trace of the 
world had gone from their midst, and it seemed as if this 
room, so plain and poor, was one of the rooms in God's 
house. 

And Je-sus said, now is the time that the Son of Man 
shall be raised to glory, and the glo-ry of God shall be 
shown in him. Lit-tle child-ren, for a short time I am 
with you. Ye shall seek me, and, as I said to the Jews, 
Where I go ye can-not come. So now I say to you. And 
he charged them to love one an-oth-er ; for all men would 



37 2 With ye-sus in the Uft-fter Room. 

know that they loved Christ, if they loved and were kind 
to each oth-er. They must walk in his steps, and they 
should soon find him. 

Pe-ter could not bear the thought that he was to lose 
sight of Je-sus; so he said to him, Lord, where dost thou 
go a-way? Je-sus said, Where I go thou canst not go 
with me now, but thou shalt be with me by and by. 

Pe-ter said, Lord, why can-not I go with thee now? I 
will lay down my life for thee. Je-sus said, Wilt thou lay 
down thy life for me? In truth I say to thee, The cock 
shall not crow till thou hast de-nied me thrice. Three 
times would Pe-ter be asked if he knew Je-sus, or were a 
friend of his, and he would say No. Pe-ter said, Though 
I should die with thee, I will not de-ny thee. And so said 
all the rest. 

Je-sus then went on to teach and to train them for the 
work they would have to do in the world when he was 
gone. Be not vexed with cares, but trust in me as ye 
trust in God. In my Fa-ther's house are ma-ny rooms: if 
it were not so I would have told you. I go to make a 
place for you. And if I go and make a place for you, I 
will come back and take you to my-self ; that where I am 
there ye may be. And where I go ye know, and the way 
ye know. Je-sus meant by this that he would not be far 
from them, and when their work on earth was done he 
would come and take them to his home on high, that they 
might dwell with him, and share in his joy. 

Thom-as said, Lord, we know not to what place thou 
dost go; how then can we know the way? Je-sus said to 
him, I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No 



374 With Jesus in the Up-fter Room, 

man can come to the Fath-er, but through me. If ye had 
learned to know me, ye should have learned to know my 
Fath-er. From this time forth ye learn to know Him, and 
have seen Him. 

Phil-ip said to him, Lord, show us the Fath-er, and 
we shall need no more. Je-sus said, Have I been so long 
with you, and yet thou hast not learned to know me, Phil-ip? 
He that hath seen me hath seen God. Why dost thou 
say, Show us the Fath-er? Dost thou not be-lieve that I 
am in the Fath-er and the Fath-er in me ? — that God and 
I are one ? The words that I say un-to you I speak not 
from my-self, but God who dwells in me does his own 
works. Be-lieve that I am in God, and God in me; or 
else be-lieve in me for the sake of the great works that I 
do. 

In truth I say un-to you, He that has faith in me, shall 
do the works that I do. Nay, he shall do more. He shall 
take my place on earth, and I will be near to help him. 
And all that ye shall ask in my name, that will I do. If 
ye love me, ye will keep my words in your hearts, and do 
as I have told you. And I will ask God to send some one 
to be with you for-ev-er. 

This guest will be the spir-it of truth, with whom the 
world will have nought to do, be-cause it sees him not, nor 
learns to know him. Ye learn to know him, for he dwells 
with you, and is in you. 

They should not see Je-sus in the flesh, or hear the 
sound of his voice, but they should know that he was near 
them, to be their strength and their guide to the end of 
their days. 




CHURCH OF THE HO-LY SEP-UL-CHRE, BUILT O-VER THE TOMB WHERE CHRIST WAS LAID. 



376 With yesus in the Ufi-f>er Room, 

I will not leave you a-lone, with-out one ray of hope to 
cheer you. I will come to you. Yet a lit-tle while, and 
the world sees me no more; but ye see me. And be-cause 
I live, ye shall live. 

A watch may have all its works, all its wheels and cogs 
may be set just right, but if the main-spring is left out it 
will not go. If Christ is the main-spring in us, we will go, 
and keep good time. We need to be wound up with pray- 
er, at least once a day, and to keep our hearts — our works — 
oiled with faith, so that there will be no jar, or fret. If we 
do this we will learn the right use of time, and to the last 
hour of life prove our love for him, who first loved us, and 
gave him-self for us. 

Je-sus said, He that loves me shall be loved of God, 
and I will love him, and will show my-self to him. 

Ju-das — who was some-times called Thad-de-us — not 
the man of crime— said to Je-sus, Lord, how is it that thou 
wilt show thy-self to us, and not to the world ? Je-sus said 
to him, If a man love me he will keep my words, and God 
will love him, and we will come to him, and stay with him. 
He that loves me not, keeps not my words; and the word 
which ye hear is not mine, but His that sent me. 

These things have I told you while I am with you. 
But the spir-it whom God will send in my name, he will 
teach you all things, and will bring to your mind all the 
things that I have told you. Peace I leave with you. My 
peace I give un-to you. Not as the world gives, give I 
un-to you. Let not your heart be vexed with doubts, and 
cares, nor let it fear what foes can do. Ye have heard how 
I said, I go a-way and I come to you a-gain. If ye loved 



With Jesus in the Up-fier Room. 377 

me ye would be glad that I go to the Fath-er. And now 
I have told you be-fore it comes to pass, that when it is 
come to pass ye may be-lieve. From this time forth I will 
not talk much with you ; for the Prince of this World comes, 
and he hath no hold on me. But he comes that the world 
may know that I love God, and do His will. 

At this point there was a stir in the room, and Je-sus 
said, Let us rise, and go from this place. And they rose, 
and sang a hymn, the words of which were in the Psalms 
of Da-vid. While yet they stood round their Lord, he 
once more spoke to them and said : 

I am the true vine, which God has set out in the world. 
The world is God's vine-yard. Each branch in me 
which bears not fruit he cuts off; and each branch which 
bears fruit, he prunes, and makes clean that it may bring 
forth more fruit. Now ye are made clean through the 
words that I have taught you. Dwell in me, and I in you. 
I am the vine. Each one of you is a branch. Lie that 
lives in me, and I in him, the same shall bring forth much 
fruit; for ye can do nought with-out me. The sap flows 
through the vine and gives to each branch its life, and the 
fruit it bears is sweet to the taste. 

Je-sus said, He who is not part of me, the vine, is cut 
off as a branch and soon dries up. And these dry twigs 
are cast in-to the fire and burned. If ye live in me, and 
my words live in you, ask what ye will and it shall be done 
to you. They were to ask, of course, to bear more fruit, 
or bet-ter fruit, and to grow more and more like the vine to 
which they clung. As the Fath-er loved me, so have I 
loved you; let my love still be with you. If ye do my will, 




THE WAY OF GRIEF. 



With Jesus in the Up-fter Room. 379 

ye shall have proof of my love; e-ven as I have done the 
Fath-er's will, and am in his love. These things have I 
told you that my joy may be with you, and that your cup 
of joy may be filled. He bids them love as he had loved, 
with no thought of self. How great had his love been for 
them! It is a proof of great love for a man to lay down 
his life for a friend. Ye are my friends said Je-sus, if ye do 
that which I bid you. No more do I call you ser-vants; 
for the ser-vant knows not what his lord does. But I 
have called you friends; for all things that I heard from 
my Father, I made known un-to you. 

Ye did not choose me, but I chose you, and sent you 
out that ye should bear fruit, and that your fruit should 
last, and be borne in-to God's house. These things I bid 
you do, and let love fill your hearts. 

If the world hates you, know that it ha-ted me be-fore 
it ha-ted you. If ye were of the world, the world would 
love its own; but be-cause ye are not of the world, but I 
chose you out of the world, for that cause the world hates 
you. Bear in mind that I said to you, A ser-vant is not 
great-er than his lord and mas-ter. What had been done 
to him, would be done to them. If they ill-used me, they 
will ill-use you. If they kept my word, they will keep 
yours. But all these things will they do to you be-cause 
of my name, and be-cause they know not Him that sent me. 
If I had not come and taught them, they would have had 
no sin. But now they have no ex-cuse for their sin. He 
that hates me hates God. If I had not done in the midst 
of them the works that no one else did, they would not 
have had sin. But now they have both seen and ha-ted 



380 With ye-sus in the Up-fier Room. 

both me and my Fath-er. But this has been done that the 
word might come true which Da-vid wrote in the Book of 
Psalms — They hate me with-out a cause. 

But when the Spir-it — the Ho-ly Ghost — is come which 
I will send you from the Fath-er, he shall speak well of 
me; and ye, too, shall tell of what I have done, for ye have 
been with me from the first. 

These things have I told you, that ye may not trip and 
fall. They shall put you out of the church-es; yes, the 
time will come that he who kills you will think that he has 
done a good work for God. These things will they do to 
you be-cause they know not the Fath-er, nor me. But 
these things have I told you, that when the time shall 
come; ye may bear in mind that I told you of them. I 
spoke not of them from the first, be-cause I was with you. 
But now I go a- way ; and none of you asks me, Where 
dost thou go ? But be-cause I have said these things to 
you, your hearts are sad. 

But I must tell you the truth. It is best for you that 
I go a-way; for if I go not a- way the Ho-ly Ghost will not 
come to you. But if I go a-way, I will send him to you. 
These words of Je-sus came true, for some-time af-ter his 
death on the cross, when the dis-ci-ples had met to talk of 
him, tongues of flame came down in-to the room, and the 
whole place was made bright with them. Those who saw 
them felt a strange glow in their heart, and with new 
strength they went out to preach and to teach of Him who 
had come in-to the world, and had died on the cross to save 
men from their sins. 

Je-sus said, I have more things to tell you, but ye can-not 




THE PLATE WHERE PT-LATE SATD THTS TS THE MAN! 



382 With ye-sus hi the Up-per Room. 

bear them now. But when he is come, the Ho-ly Ghost, 
the spir-it of truth, he will guide you in the right way; for 
it is not from him-self he will speak; but what things he 
shall hear he will speak, and will show you the things that 
are to come. He shall add to the glo-ry of my name, for that 
which is mine will he take and show un-to you. All things 
that the Fath-er has are mine; and that is why I said that he 
shall take that which is mine and shall show it to you. 

The Spir-it — which is Christ in us — will lead us to do 
great things, and will make clear to us the great truths of 
God. 

A lit-tle while and ye shall not see me — I shall be gone 
from you; and then, in a lit-tle while ye shall see me. Some 
of the dis-ci-ples thought these words were strange, and 
they said among them-selves, What does he mean when he 
says, A lit-tle while, and ye shall not see me; and then a lit- 
tle while and ye shall see me ? And what do these words 
mean, I go a- way to the Fath-er ?, 

Je-sus knew that they wished to ask him of these things, 
so he said to them, Do ye seek to know what I mean when 
I say, A lit-tle while and ye shall not see me; and a lit-tle 
while and ye shall see me? In truth I say to you that ye 
will weep and grieve, but the world will be glad, and your 
grief will soon be turned in-to joy. 

Now are ye sad, but I will come back to you, and you 
shall be glad, with a joy that no one can take a-way from 
you. These things have I taught you in par-a-bles, but an 
hour is near, when I shall no more speak to you in par-a- 
bles, but shall tell you in plain speech of the things of God. 
Christ in them would make clear to their minds the things 
that now were hid from them. 



With ye-sus in the U-p-fier Room. 383 

In that day ye shall ask in my name, and I say not that 
I will plead with God for you. There is no need, for 
God him-self loves you, be-cause ye have loved me, and 
be-lieve that I was sent forth from Him. I came forth 
from God, and am come in-to the world that I might lead 
men to Him; and I leave the world, and go back to God 
— that I may make a place for men in God's home on 
high. 

The dis-ci-ples said to him, Lo, now dost thou speak 
in plain words, and the truth is made clear to us. Now 
are we sure that thou dost know all things, and by this we 
be-lieve that thou didst come from God. Je-sus knew 
that their faith was not of the right kind. They thought 
they knew all of Christ that they would need to know. 
But Je-sus knew that an hour was near which would 
try their faith, and prove how weak it was. And he 
said to them, Do ye now be-lieve? An hour will come, 
yes, and is now here, when each one of you will think of 
him-self, and leave me all a-lone in my hour of need. Yet 
I am not a-lone, for God is with me. These things have 
I told you that in me ye may have peace c In the world 
ye shall have much grief and care ; but be of good cheer, 
for those who walk in the foot-steps of Je-sus, shall win the 
fight, and share in the joy of their Lord. 

These words spoke Je-sus, and then raised his eyes, 
and said, Fath-er the hour is come. Let thy light shine 
through the Son that men may see thee as thou art. Thou 
didst give him pow-er o-ver all men that through him they 
should have life with-out end. And this is the life that 
dies not, that they may learn to know thee, the one true 
God, and Je-sus Christ, whom thou hast sent. 



With yes us in the Up-fter Room. 385 

I have done the work thou didst give me to do; 
and now let it be shown to the world, O Fath-er, that I 
am one with thee. Let the veil be drawn that I may stand 
with thine own self in glo-ry that I had with thee ere the 
world was made. I have shown forth thy name to those 
thou didst give me out of the world ; thine they were, and 
to me thou didst give them, and they have kept thy word. 
Be-cause the words thou didst give me I gave to them, and 
they have kept them in their hearts, and learned to know 
that I came from thee, and they be-lieve that thou didst 
send me. I pray for them; I pray not for the world, but 
for those thou didst give me; for they are thine. They 
have been brought back to God. And all mine are thine, 
and thine are mine; and my light shines in them. I am 
to leave the world, but these are to stay in the world, and 
I come to thee. Do Thou keep through thine own name 
those whom thou didst give me, that they may be one as we 
are one. While I was with them I kept them in thy name, 
and took care of them, and none of them is lost but one, and 
he chose the way of sin. 

But now I come to thee, and these things I speak in 
the world that they may have the joy that is mine. I have 
taught them thy word, and the world hates them be-cause 
they are not of the world, as I am not of the world. I 
pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world, 
but that thou shouldst keep them from the sin that is in the 
world. Set them a-part from the world and in the light of 
truth; thy word is truth. As thou didst send me in-to the 
world, so have I sent them in-to the world. 

Nor for these a-lone do I pray, but for all those that 



2,86 With ye-sus in the Up-fier Room. 

shall be-lieve in me through their word ; that they all may 
be one, as Thou art in me and I in thee, that they may be 
one in us, and that the world may be-lieve that thou didst 
send me. The strength thou didst give to me, I have giv- 
en to them that they may be one with us; and that the 
world may learn to know, through them, that thou didst 
send me, and dost love them e-ven as thou dost love me. 

Je-sus has left us to do his work in the world; to have 
no thought of self, but to strive to do all the good that we 
can, to lead men up and out of their sins, and to teach 
them of the love of God. 

Je-sus said, Fath-er, I pray that those thou didst give 
me may be with me where I am, and see the light in which 
I dwell ; for thou didst love me ere the world was made. 
The world hath not known thee, but I have known thee, 
and these have learned that thou hast sent me. And I 
made known to them thy name, and will make it known, 
that the love with which thou dost love me may be in them, 
and I in them. 

If Je-sus had need to pray, how much more is there 
need for us to ask God to be with us and with those we 
love. We must pray for those who are in the world — 
those who are in the haunts of sin, and where the paths are 
rough to their feet, and where it is not so hard to do wrong 
as it is to do right. We must pray for these that they may 
have strength to walk in the foot-steps of Je-sus, and to put 
their trust in God. God lives with them that love him. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



JE-SUS IN THE GAR-DEN OF GETH-SEM-A-NE. THE JU-DAS 

KISS IN THE HANDS OF HIS FOES. HE IS BROUGHT 

BE-FORE THE HIGH-PI EST, AND THEN SENT TO 
PI-LATE. PE-TER DENIES HIS LORD. 

Je-sus left the room at the top of the house, and went 




SLOPES A-BOVE THE KED-RON. 



forth in-to the clear moon-light night. He led the way, 
and his friends kept near him; and he spoke to them, and 
said, All ye shall turn from me be-cause of what is to take 

387 



ye-sus hi the Gar-den of Getk-sem-a-ne. 



389 



place this night. For it was said of old, I will smite the 

shep-herd, and the sheep of the flock shall go from place 

to place. But when I am raised up I will go be-fore you 

in to Gal-i-lee. Pe-ter said, Though all the rest turn from 

thee, yet will I not 

leave thee. Pe-ter 

had a warm heart, 

and felt so sure of 

him-self. But J e- 

sus said to him, In 

this night, ere the 

cock crow twice, 

thou shalt thrice 

de-ny me. Pe-ter 

said to Je-sus, 

Though it cost me 

my life, though I 




VALE OF THE KED-RON. 



die with thee, I will not de-ny thee. And so said all the rest. 

They had to cross a small stream called the Ked-ron, 

or the "black brook," which flowed through the vale, and 

then they came to a gar-den where there was a fine growth 



39° 



Jesus in the Gar-den of Geth-sem-a-ne. 



of ol-ive trees. There was a large trade in ol-ives, in the 
East as much use was made of the oil that was pressed out 
of this fruit. Je-sus said to eight of those with him, Sit ye 
here, while I go off there and pray. Out of the bright 
moon-light he would go, to a dark place, where he could 
be, as it were, shut in with God. 




OL-IVE GROVE. 



He took with him Pe-ter, and James, and John, and 
was as one borne down with a weight of woe. And he said 
to those with him, My soul is sick un-to death; stay here, 
and watch with me. He felt the need of friends in this 
dark hour. They were to be on their guard, and see that 



Jesus in the Gar-den of Geth-sem-a-ne. 



39 1 



no harm came to him. And he went on a-bout a stone's 
throw from them, and knelt down and prayed, O my 
Fath-er, if it be thy will let this cup pass a-way from 
me; yet, not my will, but thine be done. He left it all in 
God's hands, and God sent an an-gel to him to give him 
strength to drink the cup. We speak of the cup of woe, 
and the cup of joy; for when we have great grief, it is as if 
we drank some-thing bit-ter ; and when we have great joy, it 
is as if we drank some-thing so sweet and good that it thrills 

through all our 
veins. 

Je-sus had 
asked Pe-ter and 
James and John 
to keep watch; 
but when he rose 
from his knees 
andwenttothem, 
he found that 
they slept. And 
he said to Pe-ter, 
who had made 
such a boast of 
his strength, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? 
Watch and pray, for ye need to be on your guard : for the 
spir-it may be will-ing, but the flesh is weak. This was so 
slight a thing to ask, and yet Pe-ter had failed him. 

Je-sus went a-way and prayed once more, O my Fath- 
er, if this cup can-not pass a-way from me ex-cept I drink 
it, thy will be done. And he came once more to Pe-ter, 




OL-IVE PRESS. 



392 



ye-sus in the Gar-den of Geth-sem-a-ne. 



James, and John, and found that they still slept. Then he 
left them and prayed for the third time and said the same 
words, and so fierce were the pangs that rent his heart, 
that the sweat poured from his face, and like great drops of 
blood fell down on the ground. Then full strength came 
to him, and he shrank no more from his fate. And he 




CHRIST ON THE MOUNT OF OL-IVES. 



came to Pe-ter, James, and John, and said to them, Sleep 
on now, and take your rest, for the hour is at hand in which 
the Son of Man shall be giv-en up to his foes. ^ Rise, and 
let us go from this place, for he is near who is to do this 



thing 




GETH-SEM-A-NE. 



394 



ye-sus in the Gar-den of Geth-sem-a-ne. 



Now Ju-das knew that Je-sus was wont to stop and 
rest in this gar-den, on his way to and from Je-ru-sa-lem. 
So he went and told the chief-priest and the Scribes, and 
they placed him at the head of a band of armed men, who 
set out with lan-terns, torch-es, swords and clubs. Though 




GAR-DEN AT GETH-SEM-A-NE. 



the moon shone bright, there were great trees in the gar- 
den that cast a broad shade, and the men thought that 
Je-sus might hide from them in some dark place. 

But Je-sus knew all that was to take place, and when 
he saw the Ju-das band, he did not hide him-self but went 
forth to meet them. Ju-das had told the men how they were to 



396 The Ju-das Kiss. 

know which was Je-sus. He said, The one I shall kiss is he; 
seize him at once, and lead him to a safe place. H e then came 
up to Je-sus, as if he were a friend, and said, Mas-ter, Mas-ter, 
and kissed him on his cheek. Je-sus said to him, Was it 
for this that thou didst come? Pe-ter spoke up and said, 
Lord, shall we smite with the sword? Je-sus paid no heed 
to these words, but spoke to the armed men, and said, 
Whom do ye seek ? They said Je-sus of Naz-a-reth. Je- 
sus said to them, I am He. Ju-das stood near them, and 
when Je-sus said, I am He, they were awe-struck and all 
went back and fell to the ground. Then Je-sus asked them 
once more, Whom seek ye? And they said, Je-sus of 
Naz-a-reth. Je-sus said, I told you that I am He. If 
then ye have come for me, let these go their way. He 
wished no harm to come to those he loved, and who had 
stood by him, true friends to the last. 

Pe-ter, when he saw the band come near to Je-sus, to take 
him, drew his sword, and struck at one of the armed men 
and cut off his right ear. The man's name was Mal-chus. 
Je-sus said to Pe-ter, Put back thy sword in its sheath; for 
all they that take the sword shall die by the sword. Then 
he asked his friends if they thought he could not get free 
from these men if he chose. If he prayed to God, he 
would send him not twelve weak men, but twelve bands of 
an-gels. But in that case the Word of God would not 
come true, and these things must be. And he turned to 
the men who had hold of him, and said to them, Let me 
do this much; and he touched the ear of Mal-chus, and 
healed the wound. Then he said to the crow T d, Have 
ye come out with swords and clubs to seize me, as if I were 



398 In the Hands of His Foes. 

a thief? I sat day by day, and taught in the tem-ple, and 
ye took me not. But this is your hour, and it is fit that 
such a deed should be done in the dark. Sa-tan is called 
the Prince of Dark-ness. Then Pe-ter, James and John, 
and the rest, when they heard these words felt that all hope 
was lost. They could not save him, and their own lives 
were not safe if they staid near him, so they turned from 
him and fled — just as Je-sus had said they would. And 
he was left in the midst of his foes, with his hands tied be- 
hind his back! 

Bound in this way, they led him to the high-priest's 
house, where An-nas and his son-in-law, Ca-ia-phas, made 
their home, and where the courts of law were held. They 
took Je-sus first to An-nas, for he was a great man, and 
much thought of by the Jews. He had once been their 
high-priest, and though an old man, his words had still 
great weight with them. 

The high-priest, An-nas, asked Je-sus who were his 
dis-ci-ples, and what he had taught them. Je-sus was calm, 
and showed no signs of fear. I spoke to all the world, he 
said. I have taught in the church, and in the courts of the 
Tem-ple where all the Jews go. What I have said, has been 
said where all could hear. Why then ask me? Ask those 
who have heard, what I said un-to them. These know 
the things that I have said. 

When he had said these things, one of the armed men 
who stood by, struck Jes-sus a blow with his hand, and 
said, Dost thou dare speak thus to the high priest? Could 
man have borne such a blow, and yet been calm? No. 
Yet Je-sus with-out a frown up-on his brow, or a flash from 



400 



He is Brought Be-fore the High-friest. 



his eye, spoke to the rude wretch near him, and said, If I 
spoke ill, prove it; but if well, why dost thou strike me? 




THE CHIEF PRIESTS TELE WHAT JE-SUS HAS DONE. 

When it was found that no more could be got out of 
Je-sus, An-nas sent him to Ca-ia-phas, whose rooms were 



He is Brought Be-fore the High-priest. 401 

a-cross the court yard. For these men had great wealth, 
and lived like kings. Here the chief priests and Scribes 
had met, and they sought to find some one to speak ill of 
Je-sus that they might put him to death. This was a great 
sin for those to do who were set to judge men, and to try 
them for their crimes. Though men came and told false 
tales, they were such as they could make no use of. At 
last came two who said, We heard this man say he would 
pull down the Tem-ple of God, and build it up new in three 
days. 

Then the high priest stood up, and said, Hast thou 
noth-ing to say? Is it true or false what these men say of 
thee? But Je-sus held his peace. Then the high priest 
bade him, on his oath, sworn to in the sight of God, tell 
those in that court of law, if he was the Christ the Son of 
God. 

Je-sus said, I am. And I say to you that from this 
time forth shall ye see the Son of Man sit-ting at the right 
hand of God, and with his throne in the clouds. Then 
the high priest rent his clothes, and said, Ye have heard 
from his own lips that he claims to be one with God. What 
think ye ought to be done with him ? They were not told 
to take time, and to look at all sides of the case ere they 
gave in their vote. No, it was all done in haste, that Je- 
sus might have no chance for his life. And they said, He 
ought to be put to death, and he was led out from their 
midst to be placed in the guard room. 

It was now long past mid-night, and though it was the 
spring of the year, there was a chill in the air. And in the 
court yard was a bright fire, round which stood the ser- 




TE-TER DE-NIES HIS LORD. 



Pe-tcr De-nies His Lord. 403 

vants of the high priest, and some of those who had gone 
out with Ju-das. 

Now Pe-ter and John had fled from Je-sus, but soon 
came back and went with the crowd to the high priest's 
house. John was known to the high priest, and it was no 
hard task for him to pass in to the court. But Pe-ter was 
stopped at the door. As soon as John found this out, he 
spoke to the maid that kept the door, and went and brought 
Pe-ter in. By this time Je-sus was out of sight, and in 
one of the court rooms in the high priest's house; so Pe-ter 
walked off by the fire, and stood there to warm him-self. 

While he was there, the maid who had been at the 
door drew near, and looked at Pe-ter, and said, Art thou 
not one of this man's friends? Pe-ter said, I am not. He 
went out for a while on the porch, and while he was there 
the cock crew. 

In a short time the same maid passed by Pe-ter a-gain; 
and she said to those who stood by, This man is one of 
them. And Pe-ter said, I am not. It was not long ere 
one of those who stood by the fire, and had heard Pe-ter 
speak, turned to him, and said, Thou must be one of them, 
for thou dost come from Gal-i-lee. Then Pe-ter, thrown 
off his guard, swore with an oath that he knew not this 
man of whom they spoke. And just then the crow of the 
cock was heard. 

At the same time Je-sus was led by the group round 
the fire, and and on the way he turned and gave Pe-ter a 
look that smote him to the heart. It was a look of love, 
but oh, so sad! And it brought back to Pe-ter's mind the 
words of the Lord, Be-fore the cock crows twice thou shalt 



Pe-ter De-nies His Lord, 



4°5 



de-ny me three times. It had come true. And when Pe- 
ter tnought of what he had done, and of the boast that he 
had made, he hid his face that his tears might not be seen, 
and rushed forth in-to the night. 

When Je-sus was placed in the guard room, the men 
in whose charge he was, did mock at him, and strike at 
him with their fists; and they did blind-fold him, and struck 
him in the face, and said, Tell us who it is that struck thee. 
And he bore it all, and said not a word. 

At day-break, the chief priests and Scribes, the four- 
score and ten that made up the San-he-drin met in their 
large hall, and Je-sus was brought in to them. They said 
to him, If thou art the Christ, tell us. Je-sus said to them, 
If I tell you, ye will not be-lieve me. He knew that all he 
could say would have no weight, for they were bent up-on 
his death. 

Then said they all, Art thou then the Son of God? 
He said to them, Ye say it, for I am. And they said, 
What do we need more? Out of his own mouth we can 
judge him. And they all rose from their seats, and went 
out to give Je-sus in-to the hands of Pi-late, who dwelt near 
the Tem-ple in the house that King Her-od had built. 

When Ju-das saw the crowd on its way to Pi-late, he 
was grieved for what he had done. And he took back to 
the chief priests the price they had paid him, and said to 
them, I sinned in that I did charge a man with crime who 
had done no wrong. They said to him, What is that to 
us? see thou to it. And he flung down the mon-ey in the 
ho-ly place, and went out and hung him-self. The chief 
priests took up the sil-ver and said, We can-not put this 



Christ Be-fore Pi-late. 407 

with the church fund since it is the price of blood. So 
they bought with it a piece of land, which from that day 
was known as, The field of blood. 

The chief priests and Scribes did not go in-to the court 
room them-selves, but sat down out-side. Pi-late went out 
to meet them, and said, Why have ye brought this man 
here? What has he done? They said, If he had not 
done wrong we would not have brought him to thee. 

Pi-late said to them, Take him, and judge him by your 
own law. The Jews said, We have no law that will let us 
put a man to death. Then Pi-late went back to the court- 
room, and called Je-sus and said to him, Art thou the 
King of the Jews ? Je-sus said, Didst thou ask this thing of 
thy-self, or wert thou told to ask me? Pi-late said, Am I 
a Jew? Men of thine own race have brought thee to me. 
What hast thou done? 

Je-sus said, My King-dom is not of this world, else would 
my ser-vants strive to keep me from the hands of the Jews. 
Pi-late said, Art thou then a king ? Je-sus said, I am a King. 
To this end was I born, and for this cause came I in-to the 
world, that I should prove the truth. Those that are of the 
truth hear my voice. Pi-late said to him, What is truth? He 
said this as one might say, How hard it is to find out what is 
the truth! For he went out at once to the Jews, and said 
to them, I find in him no crime. He saw in him no signs of 
guilt, and thought it was as well to let him go. So he said to 
the Jews, Ye know at this feast I have been w T ont to set 
free one of those shut up in jail. And there was at this 
time in one of the cells a bad man named Ba-rab-bas. And 
he said to the Jews, Which of the two shall I set free, Je- 




WHAT THEN SHALL I DO "WITH JE-STTS? 



Christ Be-fore Pi-late. 4°9 

sus or Ba-rab-bas ? And he left them, that they might take 
time to think, and make up their minds. 

In the mean-time, ere Pi-late went back to the hall, 
where Je-sus stood bound in the midst of the rough crowd, 
his wife sent for him, and said, Have nought to do with 
this good man ; for I have been in great grief be-cause of a 
dream I have had of him. 

But the chief priests and Scribes had talked with the 
mob and told them what to say. And when Pi-late took 
his seat, and asked, Which of the two will ye that I set 
free? They cried out, Ba-rab-bas! Pi-late said, What then 
shall be done to Je-sus which is called Christ? They all 
said, Let him be put to death on the cross. 

Pi-late said, Why, what crime hath he done ? — for none 
but the worst of men, those who had done the worst of 
crimes, were put to death in this way. But they cried out 
all the more, that he should be put to death on the cross. 

When Pi-late saw that the mob would have its way, and 
that his words were lost on them, he took wa-ter and washed 
his hands and said, I am not to blame for the death of this 
just man ; see ye to it. Then they all cried out and said, 
His blood be on us, and on our chil-dren. Since the days 
of Mo-ses the Jews had made use of this sign, and knew 
well what it meant ; and to this day men say, I wash my 
hands of this thing, and mean to have it known that they 
do not share in the guilt of those who may have done a 
wrong deed. But in the sight of God Pi-late had done a 
great sin. He could not wash from his hands the blood 
red stain. 

That he might please the Jews, and be at peace with 




SCOURG-ING CHRIST. 



Christ Be-fore Pi-late. 41 1 

them, he set Ba-rab-bas free; and when Je-sus had been 
scourged, he was led off to be put to death on the cross. 
None but slaves were scourged. The back was bare, and 
the man made to stoop so that the skin would stretch. The 
whips were thongs made of strips of tough hide, with 
bits of lead or bones at the end of each lash. These 
cut through the skin and drew blood, and some-times caused 
the death of the poor slaves. The men who had mocked 
Je-sus and spat in his face, would not be mild in the use of 
the lash. With his stripes are we healed. 

When the men had scourged Je-sus, they led him off to 
the guard room, and the whole band of troops were there 
to watch him. And they took off his clothes, and put on 
him a red robe. And they wove a crown of thorns, and 
put it on his head, and a reed in his right hand. And they 
bowed the knee be-fore him, and mocked him as they said, 
Hail, King of the Jews! And they spat up-on him, and 
took the reed and struck him on the head. 

Pi-late went out once more, and told the Jews that he 
found that Je-sus had done no crime. Je-sus then came 
forth, and he still wore the crown of thorns and the red 
robe that had been put on him to mock him. When the 
chief priests, and the armed men saw him they cried out, 
Cru-ci-fy him ! cru-ci-fy him ! 

Pi-late said to them, Take him your-selves, and put 
him to death on the cross, for I find no crime in him. The 
Jews said, We have a law, and by the law he ought to die, 
be-cause he made him-self the Son of God. When Pi-late 
heard that he was the more a-fraid, and he went back to 
the court room, and said to Je-sus, Where dost thou come 




CROWN OF THORNS. 



Christ Be-fore Pi-late. 413 

from? But Je-sus spoke not a word. Pi-late said, Wilt 
thou not speak to me? Dost thou not know that I have 
pow-er to put thee to death or to set thee free ? 

Je-sus said, Thou wouldst have no power to harm me 
if God did not give it to thee. For this cause he that gave 
me in-to thy hands has sinned far more than thou. Then 
Pi-late tried to set Je-sus free; but the Jews cried out, and 
said, If thou let this man go, thou art not Cae-sar's friend. 
He who makes him-self a king treads on the rights of Cae- 
sar. Now it was the aim of Pi-late to stand well in the 
eyes of the king whom he served, and to be known as Cae- 
sar's friend. So when the Jews spoke thus, he brought 
Je-sus out and sat down in the place where he was wont 
to judge those who were brought to him. And he said to 
the Jews, This is the man. Be-hold your King! But 
they cried out, A-way with him ! a-way with him ! cru-cify 
him! Pi-late said to them, Shall I cru-ci-fy your King? 
The chief priests said, We have no king but Cae-sar ! Then 
Pi-late gave Je-sus in-to their hands to be put to death on 
the cross. And they took Je-sus and led him a-way. 

When Je-ru-sa-lem was built up, the place wher Pi-late 
stood, when he said, This is the man ! was marked by an 
arch-way of stone, which stands to this day. 

But it is not in piles of stone, and rich gifts, that we 
best show our love for the Lord, but in kind deeds, and 
the pains we take to put down self, and to be more and 
more like Je-sus. 




THEN CAME JE-SLS FORTH. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

JE-SUS ON THE CROSS AND IN THE GRAVE. AN AN-GEL 

ROLLS THE STONE A-WAY. "HE IS NOT 

HERE. HE HAS RIS-EN." 

It was now Fri-day morn, and the sun shone down on 
men who were to do such a base deed that the blood runs 
cold at thought of it. None but those who had done the 
worst of crimes were put to death on the cross. The cross 
was made of a long piece of wood, with a short piece 
a-cross it near the top. It was first laid on the ground, 
and then the man who was to be hanged was nailed to it 
through his hands and feet, the hands stretched out on the 
cross beam. When this was done the cross was raised and 
let fall with a shock in-to the hole dug for it, and the whole 
weight of the poor man doomed to such a death, was on 
the hands, through whose palms the wounds were made. 

When the Jews hung those whom they had stoned to 
death, they took care to have the corpse laid in the ground 
the same day. But the Ro-mans let those who were hung 
on the cross die a slow death ; some-times they were left for 
three days, and the birds and the beasts fed on their flesh. 

The Jews were not quite so cru-el, for if death was slow 
they broke the legs of those who hung on the cross, or 
pierced their side to make sure that no life was left in them. 
And both Ro-mans and Jews shrank from the shame and 

4 J 5 




NOT THIS MAN, BUT BA-RAB-BAS. 



Je-s::s 011 the Cross. 417 

the pain of this the worst form of death — death on the 
cross. 

The place where the cross was to be set up was out 
side of the town, and the troops led Je-sus out to meet this 
death of shame. At first Je-sus bore his own cross, but the 
weight of it was too great for him, and so a black man 
named Si-mon, was called out of the crowd, and made to 
bear one end of it. The road which Je-sus took to the 
cross is now known as the way of grief. 

Then they went on till they came to a hill shaped like 
a skull, from whence it took the name of Gol-go-tha. Here 
they brought Je-sus some sour wine mixed with gall, to 
keep up his strength, but when he had put it to his lips he 
would not drink it. At nine o'clock they nailed him to 
the cross, and Pi-late wrote out in three forms, so that it 
might be read by all, the sign that was set up o-ver the 
head of our Lord. It told that he was, Je-sus of Naz- 
a-reth The King of The Jews. 

The chief priests of the Jews said to Pi-late, Write not 
The King of the Jews, but this man said I am the King 
of the Jews. But Pi-late said that what he had done was 
done, and he could make no change. And the Jews and 
the Greeks and the Ro-mans could all read the words, 
This Is Je-sus The King of The Jews. Pi-late had 
meant but to mock at the Jews, but the hand of God was 
in this thing, and those who sought to bring shame on 
Christ, had crowned him King of the whole wide world. 

The Jews, as they passed by this place, wagged their 
heads, and said, Thou that canst pull down the Tem-ple, 
and build it up in three days, save thy-self. If thou art the 




JE-SUS FALLS BE-NEATH THE WEIGHT OF THE CROSS, 



Jesus on the Cross. 419 

Son of God, come down from the cross. And the chief 
priests and Scribes said, He saved oth-ers; him-self he can- 
not save. If he is thfe King of the Jews, let him come 
down from the cross, and we will be-lieve in him. His 
trust was in God ; let him save him now if he cares for him; 
for he said, I am the Son of God. With such taunts and 
gibes they showed their hate for him who for three long 
hours hung up-on the cross, and felt a weight of woe in 
which no one on earth could share. 

Four men — part of the Ro-man guard — were set to 
watch Je-sus, lest some of his friends should come and take 
him down from the cross. And these men took his clothes, 
which had been stripped from him, and made them in-to 
four parts, so that each one could have the same share. 
But there was one long robe, such as was worn by the 
high priest, and it had no seam in it, but from the top 
through-out was in one piece. The men looked at it, and 
said, Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to see whose it 
shall be. And this was done. 

Now at the time that Je-sus was put to death on the 
cross, two thieves were put to death in the same way near 
him, one on his right hand, and one on his left. This was 
done to cast more shame on Him, who knew no sin. 

The thief on the left hand, to add to the taunts of the 
crowd, said to Je-sus so that all could hear him, If thou art 
the Christ, save thy-self and us. But the thief on the right 
hand, said to him, Dost thou not fear God, as thou art to 
be judged for thy sins? It is just that we be put to death 
for our crimes, but this man has done no wrong. And he 
turned his face to Je-sus and said, Lord, bear me in mind 
when thou dost come in-to thy King-dom. 




ON THE CROSS. 



Jesus on the Cross. 421 

Je-sus said to him, To-day shalt thou be with me in the 
home of the blest. This was the thief's last chance; his 
last hope. He was vile and full of sin, but at the last hour 
of his life, ere the breath left him, he came to Je-sus and 
was saved. 

Now there stood by the cross of Je-sus four wom-en, 
and one of them was his moth-er. When Je-sus saw her, 
and that John whom he loved stood near her, he said to 
his moth-er, Wom-an, be-hold, thy son ! And he said to 
John, Be-hold, thy moth-er! And from that hour John 
was as a son to her ; and he took her to his own home and 
took care of her. 

Je-sus was nailed to the cross at nine o'clock, and from 
the hour of noon till three o'clock the light of the sun was 
put out, and the whole land was as dark as night. Not a 
sigh, nor a groan, was heard from the cross where Je-sus 
hung. All was still. The light of the world had been put 
out by the hand of man, and the sun hid its face be-hind a 
cloud. This was a sure sign that God was not pleased 
with what had been done, and must have brought fear and 
dread to those who had had a hand in the death of Je-sus. 

At three o'clock, when Je-sus had been on the cross for 
six hours, he cried out to God with a loud voice. He felt 
the pains of the flesh, and so sharp were they and so hard 
to bear it seemed as if God had left him. So he laid hold 
on God for fresh strength, to teach us what we must do in 
the last hour when flesh and heart fail us. 

The guards heard the cry of Je-sus and thought that 
he called for E-li-jah, and they said, let us see if E-li-jah 
comes to save him. Then Je-sus gave a sigh, and said, I 
thirst. And one of the men took a sponge and filled it 




THE MA-RYS AT THE CROSS, 



Jesus on the Cross, 



4 2 3 



with sour wine and put it up-on a reed, so that Je-sus could 

quench his thirst. It 

touched his lips, and he 

said : The work Thou 

didst give me to do, is 

done. And he bowed 

his head and gave up 

the ghost. 

Then the veil of the 
Tem-ple was torn in 
two, and the earth did 
quake, and the rocks 
were rent. The stone 
doors fell from the tombs, 
and some of the saints 
which slept there were 
raised from the dead. 
When the men who 
were on guard, and 
kept watch of Je-sus 
saw the earth quake and 
the things that were 
done, they said, Of a 
truth this was the Son 
of God. 

As the next day 
was the Sab-bath, and 
the first of this great 
fast of the church, the 

J.' TV 1 1 VEIL OF TEM-PLE RENT IN TWAIN, 

ews sent to ri-late and 

beg-ged him to have the guard break the legs of those that 





THEY TOOK JE-SUS DOWN FROM THE CROSS. 



Jesus on the Cross. 425 

hung on the cross, that they might be put in-to their graves. 
Then came the armed men, and first broke the legs of the 
thieves that were on the right hand and left hand of Je-sus. 
When they came to Je-sus and saw that he was dead they 
brake not his legs; but to make sure that life had left him, 
one of the men thrust a spear in-to his side, the heart was 
pierced, and the blood flowed out. 

These things were done, that all that was fore-told of 
Christ might come true. For Mo-ses had told the Jews 
that the bones of the Lamb that was slain for the feast 
must not be crushed. And it was said in the Psalms, A 
bone of him shall not be crushed. And else-where it was 
said, They shall look on me whom they have pierced. Je- 
sus was the Lamb whom God had sent, but w T hom the 
Jews would not have. The Lamb of God that takes a- way 
the sins of the world. 

Now there was in Je-ru-sa-lem, a rich man from Ar-i- 
ma-the-a, named Jo-seph. He had faith in Je-sus, and 
thought that he was all that he claimed to be ; but for fear 
of the Jews he had not let this be known. He was a good 
and just man, and well read in the law, and had no hand 
in the death of Je-sus. 

It was three o'clock when our Lord drew his last breath, 
and at sun-down Jo-seph grown more bold went to Pi-late 
and beg-ged that he might take Je-sus from the cross. Pi- 
late did not think he could be dead so soon, but when he 
learned that the breath had left him, he bade his men give 
the corpse in-to the hands of Jo-seph to do with as he would. 
He came then, and took Je-sus a- way; and there was with 
him one Nic-o-de-mus, the same who came to Je-sus by 




CHRIST IS BORNE TO THE TOMB. 



ye-sus in the Grave. 



427 



night, and he brought with him more than four-score pounds 
of mixed gums and spice to spread on the cloths in which 
the form of Je-sus was to be wrapped. 





SEP-UL-CHRE, OR TOMB. 



Then they took Je-sus down from the cross and 
wrap-ped him in the fine white lin-en cloths that Jo-seph 



Jesus in the Grave. 429 

had bought, and they laid him in Joseph's own tomb in a 
gar-den close at hand. This tomb was cut out of a rock, 
at great cost, and in it no man had yet been laid. And 
when they had rolled a great stone up to the door of the 
tomb, they left the place, and went back in-to the town. 




THE GUARDS AT THE TOMB. 



Some of the rich men spent a great deal of their wealth 
on their tombs, the place where they were to lie when they 
were dead. They felt great pride in this, and much skill 
was shown in the way the tombs were built, and not a few 
of them stood forth as great works of art. 



43° ye-sus in the Grave. 

The next day— which we would call the last day of the 
week — was, with the Jews, the great Sab-bath of the year. 
And the chief priests and Scribes came to Pi-late and said, 
Sir, it is in our minds that that man said, w r hile he was yet 
a-live, At the end of three days I shall rise from the dead. 
Let a guard keep watch of the tomb till the third day, lest 
his friends come by night and steal him a-way, and claim 
that he rose him-self from the dead. 

Pi-late said to them, Ye have a guard of your own; go 
your way, and use such means as you think best to make 
it safe. So they went and stretched a string a-cross the 
great stone door, and made it fast to the rock with seals of 
wax, or clay. And when this was done they placed a 
guard of armed men there to keep watch, and see that no 
one broke the seals. 

At sun-set of that day — for no work could be done on 
the Day of Rest from sun-rise to sun-set — Ma-ry of Mag- 
da-la, and Ma-ry the moth-er ot James, and her sis-ter Sa- 
lo-me, bought spice and gums that they might come and 
lay out Je-sus for the grave, for what Nic-o-de-mus had 
done was done in haste. 

Ere the sun rose on the first day of the week, these 
three wom-en set out for the tomb, and on the way they 
said, Who shall roll us a-way the stone from the door of 
the tomb ? And there came a great earth-quake. And an 
an-gel of the Lord came down from on high, and rolled 
back the stone from the tomb, and sat up-on it. His face 
shone as the sun, and his robes were as white as snow; and 
for fear of him the watch-men did quake, and were as dead 
men. This was not known to those who came with sad 






An An-gel Rolls the Stone A -way. 431 

hearts at the dusk of dawn to mourn their loss. They were 
the last to leave the cross, and were now the first at the 
grave. 

As soon as Ma-ry of Mag-da-la saw that the stone had 
been rolled from the door of the tomb, she ran to Pe-ter 
and John and said to them, They have ta-ken the Lord 
out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid 
him. Pe-ter and John set out at once for the tomb, but as 
John was a young man, and light of foot, he out-ran Pe-ter 
and reached there the first. And he stooped down, and 
looked in, and saw the cloths that had been wrapped round 
Je-sus, but dared not go in-to the tomb. 

Pe-ter was more bold ; for as soon as he came up, he 
went in-to the tomb, and saw the cloths that lay there. 
And the square piece that was on the face of Je-sus did 
not lie with the rest of the cloths, but was rolled up in a 
place by it-self. 

Then John went in, and when he saw these signs he 
knew that no one had robbed the grave, but that Je-sus 
had left the tomb him-self, and it was vain to search for him. 
All doubts and fears were at rest, and yet in a strange frame 
of mind Pe-ter and John went back to their own homes. 

Ma-ry had run with them part of the way, but by the 
time she reached the tomb, they had left, and she stood 
out-side and wept. Her sole thought was, They have 
ta-ken my Lord a-way from the tomb, and I know not 
where they have laid him. With her eyes filled with tears 
she stooped down, and gazed in-to the tomb, and saw there 
two an-gels in white, one at the head and one at the feet, 
where the form of Je-sus had lain. 




JE-SUS SHOWS HIM-SELF TO MA-RY. 



He is not Hei'e. 433 

They said to her, Why dost thou weep? She said, 
They have ta-ken a-way my Lord, and I know not where 
they have laid him. When she had thus said she turned 
round, and saw that some one stood near her, but did not 
know that it was Je-sus. 

Je-sus said to her, Why dost thou weep? Whom dost 
thou seek? She thought that he was the man who had 
charge of the grounds, and that he might tell her what she 
longed to know. So she said to him, Sir, if thou didst 
bear him from this place, tell me where thou hast laid him, 
and I will take him a-way. 

Je-sus said to her, "Ma-ry!" She turned and said to 
him, "O my Mas-ter!" and would have thrown her-self at 
the feet of the Lord, and held him fast. But Je-sus said, 
Touch me not! Cling not to me! but go to my breth-ren 
and say to them, I go to my Fa-ther and your Fath-er; and 
to my God and your God. The time would come when 
men should see him, and touch him, and cling to him, and 
hear his voice — as we do now by faith — but then it was too 
soon to look for such a state of things. 

Awe struck: Ma-ry went her way to bear the word 
that Je-sus had sent, and to tell all whom she met, "I have 
seen the Lord!" And the tears she now wept were those 
of joy. 

When the wom-en came up who had brought the rich 
gums and the spice, they found the stone rolled a-way 
from the door of the tomb; and as they went in-to the tomb 
they saw a young man at the right side of it, clothed 
in a long white robe, and were awe-struck at the sight. 
The an-gel said to them, Fear not; for I know ye seek 




HE IS NOT HERE, 






He is Ris-en. 435 

Je-sus who was put to death on the cross. He is not 
here. He is ris-en. Come, see the place where they laid 
him. 

Then go with speed and tell Pe-ter and the rest that he 
will meet them in Gal-i-lee. There shall ye see him, as he 
said un-to you. And they went out from the tomb with 
fear and great joy, and ran to take the word to those who 
had been left to do the Lord's work on earth. 

On the way Je-sus met them, and said to them, All 
hail ! And they came and took hold of his feet, and bowed 
down be-fore him. Then said Je-sus to them, Fear not. Go 
and tell Pe-ter and the rest to go in-to Gal-i-lee, and there 
they shall see me. 

Then Pe-ter and the rest went in-to Gal-i-lee, and to 
the mount where Je-sus had said he would meet them. And 
when they saw him, they bowed down be-fore him; though 
some had doubts if this was the right thing to do, And 
Je-sus came still more near, and spoke to them, and said, 
All pow-er is giv-en to me in heav-en and on earth. Go 
ye, then, and teach all the world, and bap-tize them in the 
name of the Fath-er, and of the Son, and of the Ho-ly 
Ghost. Teach them to do all thing's that I have taught 
you ; and be sure that from day to day I will be with you to 
the end of the world. 

In the mean-time some of the watch-men came in to the 
town, and told the chief priests all that had been done. 
And when they heard of it, they paid a large sum to the 
watch-men, and told them to say, The friends of Je-sus 
came by night, and stole him a-way while we slept. Now 
it was a crime for a man on guard to sleep at his post ; and 



43 6 He Has Ris-en, 

these men, who were part of an armed band, knew that they 
would be put to death if it was found out. So to quell 
their fears the chief priests said if it came to the ears of Pi- 
late they would make it all right with him, and no harm 
should be done them. So they took the price that was 
paid them and did as they were told ; and for long years it 
was thought that what they said of Je-sus w r as true, and that 
he did not rise from the dead. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

THE WALK TO EM-MA-US. JE-SUS IS SEEN BY THOSE WHO 

LOVE HIM. THE LAST FARE-WELL. A CLOUD 

HIDES HIM FROM SIGHT. 

The same day that Je-sus rose from the tomb, two of 
those who had been with him, and were taught by him, set 
out for a small town called Em-ma-us, which was less than 
eight miles from Je-ru-sa-lem. And as they went on their 
way they spoke of all these strange things which had been 
done. And while they thus talked, Je-sus him-self drew 
near and went with them. And they did not know him. 
It is so at times with those who love Je-sus the most. 
They are sad, and the light seems gone out of life, and 
there is no hope in their hearts. But Je-sus is near though 
they do not see him. He leaves them in the dark a while, 
that he may bless them more and more. 

And as he drew near these two, he said to them, What 
things do ye talk of as ye walk ? and why are ye sad ? and 



The Walk to Em-ma-us< 



437 



one of them named Cle-o-pas, said un-to him, Art thou 
but just come to Je-ru-sa-lem, that thou dost not know the 
things which have come to pass there in these days? He 
said un-to them, what things ? They said, The things 
a-bout je-sus of Naz-a-reth, who was a great proph-et in 
deed and in word be-fore God and all the world : and how 




EM-MA-US. 



the chief priests and Scribes gave him up to be put to death, 
and hanged him on the cross. 

But we put great trust in him, and hoped that it was 
he who should save our race from their sins. And now it 
is the third day since these things took place. Yes, and 
some wom-en of our band who went to the tomb at day 



43 8. ye-sus is Seen by TTiose Who Love Him. 

break told us strange news. For when they found He was 
not there, they came back and said they had seen some 
an-gels who told them he was a-live. And some of those 
who were with us went to the tomb, and found that what 
the wom-en said was true: but him they saw not. 

Then Je-sus told them if they had read the Word of 
God as they should have done, they would have learned 
what Mo-ses and all the proph-ets had fore-told. For all 
these things must take place, and Christ must bear the load 
of grief and pain, and be put to death on the cross ere he 
could reach his home on high, and shine down on the 
hearts of men. And he made clear to their minds all that 
had been said of him — in the Psalms, and else-where in 
the Word of God. 

As they drew near to the small town, for which they 
had set out, Je-sus made as if he would go on and leave 
them. And they begged him not to do so, and said, Come 
and stay with us, for the day is now far spent, and it will 
soon be dark. And he went in to stay with them. And 
when he had sat down to sup with them, he took the bread 
and gave thanks, and broke it and gave to them. And 
then they knew him. And as they gazed awe-struck up-on 
him he passed out of their sight. 

When speech came back to them, they said, Did not 
our hearts burn with-in us while he talked with us on the 
way, and while he made plain to us the Word of God ? and 
they rose at once, and went back to Je-ru-sa-lem, and 
found Peter, John and the rest in the room where they 
were wont to meet. And they told them all the things 




JE-SUS SHOWS HIM-SELF TO HIS DIS-CI-PLES. 



44° ye-sus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. 

that took place on the way to Em-ma-us, and how Je-sus 
was made known to them as he broke the bread. 

They were met with joy, and those who heard the good 
news had good news to tell, for Je-sus had in-deed left the 
tomb and had been seen by Pe-ter. 

At the close of that same day Ten of them sat in this 
room with closed doors, for fear of the Jews. And as they 
talked of the things that had made glad their hearts, and 
turned their grief to joy, Je-sus came and stood in the 
midst of them, and said, Peace be with you. But they 
were scared, and thought they saw a ghost. Je-sus said to 
them, Why are ye scared? and why do doubts a-rise in 
your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I. 
Touch me, and see for your-selves; for a ghost hath not 
flesh and bones as ye see me have. And while they were 
yet in such a state of joy that they could scarce be-lieve it 
was not all a dream, Je-sus said, Have ye here some food? 
And they gave him a piece of a boiled fish. And he took 
it and did eat be-fore them. 

And he said to them once more, Peace be with you. 
As the Fath-er hath sent me, so do I send you. And 
when he had said this he breathed on them, and said, The 
Ho-ly Gost be up-on you! He gave them, as it were, new 
life, and they were to go out and build up His church on 
earth, and teach men how they could be saved from their 
sins. 

Now Thom-as, one of the Twelve, was not with the rest 
when Je-sus came, and when he heard the news it seemed 
to him too good to be true. In vain did the rest say to 
him, We have seen the Lord. 



Je-sus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. 441 

He thought their grief had crazed them. As for him- 
self, the death on the cross crushed out all hopes that he 
had that Je-sus would save the race, and set the Jews free 
from the yoke, that made them slaves to the King of 
Rome. 

So Thom-as could not share in the joy that filled the 
hearts of the rest, and he said to them, If I cannot see in 
his hands the prints of the nails, and put my fin-ger in-to 
the print of the nails, and put my hand in-to his side, I will 
not be-lieve. At the close of that week these friends of 
Je-sus met in the same room, and Thom-as was with them. 
And when the doors were shut Je-sus came and stood in 
their midst, and said, Peace be un-to you. Then he called 
Thom-as to him, and bade him stretch forth his finger and 
put it in the wounds in his hands; and to stretch out his 
hand, and thrust it in the spear-wound in his side. And 
he told him not to be so weak in faith, but to be-lieve that 
he was the same Je-sus who had died on the cross, and 
now reigned on high. 

He had put all foes under his feet; and the last foe of 
all was Death. 

When Thom-as saw Je-sus him-self, and heard these 
words, all doubts fled a-way, and he cried out with a 
burst of joy, My Lord, and my God! Je-sus said to him, 
Be-cause thou hast seen me thou dost be-lieve; blest are 
they that have not seen me, and yet have faith in me. 

The next time that Je-sus was seen on earth, was by 
the Sea of Gal-i-lee. Pe-ter was there, and Thom-as, and 
five more of those whom Je-sus had first called. They had 
lived for some time from one purse, but now as there was 




HE SHOWED THEM HIS HANDS. 






ye-sus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. 



443 



no one to be at their head, each one must shift for him-self. 
They talked for some time of their plans, and at last Pe-ter 
made up his mind to go back to his old trade. The rest 
might do as they pleased, but Pe-ter said, I go to catch 







fish ! The rest said, We will 
go with thee. 

They set sail the same 
night — for night is the best 
time to catch fish — and 
though they toiled all night 
long not one fish did they catch. At the break of day, 
while yet the mist was on the sea, some one stood on the 
shore, but those on the boat did not guess who it was. 



SEA OF GAL-I-LEE. 



444 Jesus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. 

And a voice called to them, and said, Have ye caught any 
fish? They said, No. The voice said to them, Cast the 
net on the right side of the boat, and ye shall find. They 
. cast the net as they were told, and had scarce strength to 
draw it, so great was the haul of fish. Then John said to 
Pe-ter in a low voice, It is the Lord. 

At once Pe-ter tied his coat a-round his thighs for he 
had no clothes on, and leaped in-to the sea, to swim the 



CAST-ING THE NET. 



space that lay be-tween him and his Lord, and to throw 
him-self at his feet. The rest came in a small boat — for 
they were not far from land — and dragged the net with 
them. 

As they came to land they saw a wood fire there, and 
a piece of fish had been laid on the coals to broil, and near 
at hand was a loaf of bread. And He who stood there 



ye-sus is Seen by Those Who Love Hiin. 



445 



bade them bring some of the fish which they had caught. 
Pe-ter sprang up at once, and went to help them, with his 
strong arm, to drag the net to shore, and though there were 
x 53 large and small fish-es, not a rent was made in the net, 
and not one fish was lost. 




THE NET DID NOT BREAK. 



The Church of Christ is like a net. Those who go out 
to fish, are those who go to seek and to save those who are 
lost; the fish that swim in a sea of sin. They toil in the 
night, that the lamp they bear with them may shine the 



446 Jesus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. 

more bright, and may toil for hours in vain. But when 
they hear the voice of the Lord, they must at once do as 
he bids them. The right side of the boat is the Lord's 
side, and when the net is cast, such crowds — the great and 
the small — will be brought in-to the church, that there will 
seem to be scarce room for them. If you will look at a 
net you will find it is made up of small holes. Each hole 
is called a nesle, or a snare. Here and there are knots 
that keep the snares a-part and add strength to the net; 
and the whole is made up of one cord — the cord of God's 
love — which will not break though all the fish in all the 
seas were caught in the net. 

When Pe-ter and the rest had brought the fish to shore, 
Je-sus said to them, Come and break-fast. So awed were 
they by the sight of his face, and the sound of his voice, 
whom they knew to be the Lord, that they dared not 
speak one word. And he came and gave them of the 
bread and the fish, and they did eat. 

When souls are brought in-to the Church of Christ, Je- 
sus bids them sit down to a feast with him. The fare is 
plain, but with Je-sus there we feed on an-gels' food, and 
He gives us strength for our life work. 

When the meal was at an end, Je-sus said to Pe-ter, 
Dost thou love me more than all the rest? Pe-ter said, Yes, 
Lord; thou know-est that I love thee. Je-sus said to him, 
Feed my lambs. Then in a short time he asked Pe-ter 
a-gain if he loved him. And Pe-ter said, Yes, Lord; thou 
know-est that I love thee. Je-sus said to him, Feed my 
sheep. 

The young are the lambs of God's flock; and Je-sus 



Jesus is Seen by Those Who Love Him. 



447 



meant that Pe-ter was to teach and to preach to these, and 
not to let them stray from the fold. The old-er ones are 




JE-SUS TAKES BREAD AND GIVES TO THEM. 



the sheep, whom he was to care for with wise thought, and 
to be their guide and friend, that they might not fall in-to 
the pits dug for their feet, or be seized by beasts of prey. 



448 ye-sus is Seen by Those Who Love Him, 

And Je-sus said to Pe-ter, When thou wast a young- 
man thou didst gird thy-self, and walk here and there of 
thine own free will. But when thou shalt be old, thou 
shalt stretch forth thy hands, and some one else shall gird 
thee and bring thee where thou wouldst not go. These 
words he said to show forth to Pe-ter the death he should 
die. When he was an old man, he would be bound, and 
his hands stretched out, and nailed to the cross. All this 
took place as Je-sus had said, and Pe-ter at his death, 
begged to be hung with his head down-ward that he might 
bear more shame than his Lord and Mas-ter. 

He was to do God's will, and to walk in the foot-steps 
of Je-sus — to bear all that he bore on earth — and at last 
to die a death of shame up-on the Cross. 

While Je-sus spoke these words, Pe-ter walked by his 
side, and a few steps in front of the rest of the fish-er-men. 
And he looked back and saw John, and said to Je-sus, 
Lord, and what shall this man do ? 

Je-sus said, If I will that he stay till I come, what is 
that to thee ? Thy path is made clear to thee. Walk in my 
foot-steps. 

Each one of us has his own work to do in the world. 
It may not be just what suits us, but if it is the Lord's 
will we must do it. It is thus we show our love for Him, 
and he will give us strength and joy. We must not ask 
what this one is to do, and why we must tread such a rough 
way, and have such a hard lot, where some that we know 
lead a life of ease, and walk in a smooth path. God knows 
what is best for us, and it is not for us to find fault with 
Him. If we raise our hearts to Him He will give us all the 



The Last Fare-well. 



449 



help we need ; and all the ills of life that seem so hard to 
bear, will be sure to turn out for our good. _ 

More than a month had now passed since Je-sus was 
put to death on the Cross, and we are told that he had 
been seen on the earth at least nine times since he rose 
from the dead. He had made it known, that on a mount 





BROW OF THE MOUNT OF OL-IVES. 



in Gal-i-lee he would meet with all who knew and loved 
him, for the last time. 

He met them in Je-ru-sa-lem, and led them to the brow 
of the Mount of Ol-ives, and called to their minds all that 
he had taught them when he was with them on earth. He 
made clear to them the Word of God, and showed them 



450 A Cloud Hides Him From Sight. 

how all things that Mo-ses and Da-vid had said of him, 
the Christ, had come to pass. He told them to preach 
and to teach In His Name, not the Jews alone but all the 
whole world, that men might lead new lives, and give their 
hearts to God. 

And to cheer them, Je-sus said, Lo, I am with you all 
your days, e-ven un-to the end of the world. And he bade 
them stay in Je-ru-sa-lem till pow-er came down to them 
from on high, that they might have strength and skill to 
preach the Word of God. For those who had seen him 
with their own eyes had a great work to do, and must tell 
of Je-sus to all the ends of the earth. 

Then he raised his hands and blest them ; and while 
they looked at him, he was borne up from the ground as on 
wings, and as he rose a bright cloud hid him from their 
sight. While their gaze was yet fixed on the sky, in the 
hope that Je-sus would come back to them, two men 
clothed in white came and stood by them. And they said, 
Ye men of Gal-i-lee, why stand and gaze up in-to heav-en? 
this same Je-sus shall come down from his home on high 
in the same way that ye have seen him go up to heav-en. 

Thev were not to fold their hands, and watch and wait 
for him, but to go at once and do the work that he had 
laid out for them to do. 

And they went back to Je-ru-sa-lem with hearts filled 
with joy, and gave thanks and praise to God, for this sign 
that Je-sus was not lost to them, but that they should see 
his face once more. 

Je-sus is with those who love him. They see him with 
the eye of faith. He is near them at all times. He knows 




THE AS-CEN-SION. 



45 2 



A Cloud Hides Him From Sight. 



their grief and pain, and gives them strength to bear them. 
He has balm for all our wounds. 

In a few years Je-ru-sa-lem was a great heap of stones; 
its walls were torn down, and the whole race of Jews 
put to flight, and charged not to come near the place or 
they would be put to death. For a long time it was the 
scene of great wars, and at last fell in-to the hands of the 
Turks, whose King or Ca-liph had a mosque built on the 




MOSQUE OF O-MAK. 



site, or place, where once stood the great Tem-ple of Sol-, 
o-mon. 

A mosque is a place of pray-er. The Turks have faith 
in God, but their be-lief is a strange one, and their mode 
of wor-ship not at all like ours. They say, There is no god 
but God; and Mo-ham-med is his proph-et. They have 
faith in him, and not in our Lord, Je-sus Christ. 

But it is on him we lean. There is no friend like 



454 



A Cloud Hides Him From Sight. 



Je-sus. He knows our hearts. He sees our tears. He 
knows w r hat we would ask for, though our lips are dumb. 
There is not one of us but needs to say, Care for me, Lord, 
for I can-not take care of my-self. I am poor and weak. 
I need a strong friend near me night and day. Make 




JESUS MY KING. 



thy home in my heart. Drive out all thy foes. Let me 
be on the watch to hear the sound of thy voice. 

I am here to do thy will, and not my own will; to 
please God, and not to please my-self. There is not an 
hour of my life that I do not need thee. Thou who didst 



A Cloud Hides Him From Sight. 455 

go out to seek and to save those who were lost, search me 
out when I stray from the right path, and save me from 
those who would drag me down to shame and death. 

Olt I do wrong when I do not mean to do wrong. 
Teach me to so hate sin as to fight it on all sides, and give 
it no chance to find a weak spot in my heart. If once in, 
it is hard to get it out. 

Je-sus was thir-ty-three years old at the time of his 
death, and had taught but three years; yet the seed he 
sowed has sprung up and borne rich fruit, and will go on, 
and grow, till all the world shall know his name, and all 
hearts shall bow down and serve him. For he is King of 
Kings — Lord of Lords — and Prince of Peace. 

He came on earth to bring peace and good-will to men: 
peace with God, whose good will it is that all men shall be 
saved. He died on the cross to save them from the curse 
due to their sins, and now lives and reigns in the bright 
home on high, where life and love shall have no end. 
Those who shut him out of their hearts, and walk in a dark 
path, do it of their own free-will; for Je-sus stands at the 
door of their hearts at all hours of the day and night. 

And he says to you and to me — Come, learn of me. 
Walk in my foot-steps. I am the light of the world. 



THE END, 



^ 



02. 



LUg'3' 



